All For Love
by Rampantt
Summary: "It's just... You make me so angry sometimes. I don't want to hurt you, Hinata, I love you."
1. Punishment

**_Why hello there. It's so nice of you to stop by. I am KawaiixKisses and this yet another SasuHina. I'm going with something new, trying my hand a few new genres of writing. Hopefully this story will be a success. I do hope you enjoy the first chapter._**

**All For Love**

_**KawaiixKisses**_

_**(Muah)**_

Love is Punishment

* * *

"It's not so bad, really… I'm fine."

Even to her the words sounded like a lie.

How was she supposed to tell them the truth? How was she supposed to let them know how horrible everything was without worrying them?

The Hyuuga gave her friends a small smile, allowing them to see what she wanted them to. They didn't have to know the truth. Really, it was better for everyone if they didn't. She didn't need them worrying about her. She didn't need them asking her questions she wasn't willing to answer. Couldn't they just leave her alone? She loved them dearly, really she did but she just wished that they'd mind their own business sometimes. They might be her best friends but they didn't need to know everything that went on in her life. She was a grown woman – 26 –she was entitled to her privacy. Wasn't she?

"Are you sure? I mean… He seemed really mad," came the voice of her pink-haired friend.

"Hn," Hinata said with a smile. "He just wants me to get home earlier."

"But did he have to yell like that?" came the voice of another friend, this one blonde.

"Well, you know Naruto… He's always yelling about something, whether he's happy or mad."

The two friends cast each other a glance before turning their gaze back to their opal-eyed friend. They knew she was lying. Why couldn't she just come out and tell them the truth? They could help her. They loved her. That's all it was. Love.

"Hinata… If something is going on, you know you can tell us right? We're you're friends. We're here for you."

"Hn," she answered the pinkette, smiling pretty and nodding her head.

The pinkette let out a small sigh before sitting back in her chair. The blonde however was unconvinced and continued to stare at the Hyuuga.

"Hinata…" she began, but the Hyuuga cut her off by standing up abruptly, obviously finished with the conversation.

"It's okay you guys. I've got to be going now, see you all later."

And with that the Hyuuga hurried away from the table and out of the café and to her car. She had to get home quick, the longer she took the angrier Naruto would become.

She reached home in record time, pushing the front door open and stepping inside. Nervously she looked about, her eyes traveling the foyer as she shut the door as quietly as she possibly could. She licked her lips nervously, anxiety building up in the pit of her stomach as she began to move towards the living room.

"N-Naruto…?" she called quietly.

She was answered by silence as she glided into the living room.

Her heart fell to her feet as her eyes landed on him. He was seated in his favorite chair, his feet propped up against the coffee-table and a nasty glare fixed in

"What time is it, Hinata?"

She chewed her bottom lip nervously before answering. "Three."

"Three. I told you to be back here by two and it's what? Three."

"Y-you said s-six…"

"Are you calling me a liar?" he asked, his blonde brow arched in questioning.

Her opal eyes widened slightly. She hadn't meant it that way. Not at all. She began shaking her head frantically as she watched him rise to his feet.

"Th-that's not what I meant. I j-j-just… I m-meant th-that I-I…"

"You what Hinata? Because to me it sounds like you think I'm a liar."

"N-no, N-Naruto… I d-don't think th-that of y-you…"

"Then what are you trying to say to me Hinata? That I forgot?" he asked as he began moving closer to her.

Immediately, her feet began carrying her backwards, working on their own accord.

"No! I forgot!" she said with panic. "I-it was m-me… I forgot."

This seemed to please him. But only for a moment because he continued to move towards her.

"P-please, I… It won't happen again… I promise."

"You promise? A promise is a comfort only to a fool, Hinata. Do I look like a fool to you?"

"N-No! You're very s-smart."

He nodded his head in agreement at that, but his smug satisfaction only lasted a few moments because he looked at her once more, his eyes filled with such unforgiving anger.

"Then why do you keep treating me like an idiot? Hm? Why do you expect me to believe such stupid things?" he questioned her, his nose wrinkling with distaste.

He closed the distance between them suddenly, his hands gliding into her hair and gripping at the long, black tresses painfully as he slammed her back against the far wall by the window. "Huh? Why is that?"

Hinata tried to shake her head but his grip was too strong, he had her pinned in the corner, her back pressing against the wall until pain shot down her spine.

"Bitch you better answer me."

The pale-skinned woman didn't know what to say, how to answer. He was being irrational. There was no answer to such a question –no answer that would please him anyway…

"I don't know," she whispered softly, tears filling her eyes as she stared up at him.

"You don't know…" he mocked her in a sing-song voice.

Hinata trembled at the feel of his vodka stained breath against her face.

He pulled one of his hands out of her hair, tightening his grip with the other one as he began dragging her about the living room.

"Why is it that you never have an answer to any of my questions?"

Tears slid from her eyes as her hands shot up to his wrist, pain bolting through her.

"N-Naruto… Please! Please stop!" she begged him, her eyes now red and puffy from all the tears she shed.

The blonde sucked his teeth with annoyance, using the grip he had on her hair to toss her aside.

The petite woman whimpered as her small frame hit the cold tile of the kitchen.

"Look at you…" he said with obvious disgust as he walked around her.

Hinata pulled herself up, looking up at him from the floor, waiting for the blow she knew was coming.

The male crouched down until they were eye-level, looking over her face carefully for a moment. Hinata figured he was looking for the best spot to strike later on, the thought causing her to flinch and him to wrinkle his nose in disgust.

"You a'int worth shit," he decided, staring her in the eye. "To think men used to actually want you. How lucky I am… Tch. I should have married that pink haired bitch, y'know? She's so much prettier than you are.

I mean sure, you've got some big tits," his eyes roamed from her face to her chest.

"But that's it. Other than that you're nothing. The only reason they're so big is because you're fat."

The opal eyed woman looked down, not wanting to meet his gaze any longer. She could feel the tears sliding down her cheeks, dropping onto her soft blue button down shirt.

"Look at me bitch," he demanded, grabbing her by her hair again and forcing her to look up at him. "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Hinata shook her head frantically, her eyes widening with fear as she watched him standing up, pulling her to her knees in the process.

He pushed both hands into her hair, tilted her head up so that she had no other choice but to look up at him.

"Fucking shame that even this position does nothing for me. You really are useless."

The Hyuuga wanted badly to shift her gaze elsewhere but knew it would only anger him more if she did. Maybe if she did what he said, he'd leave her alone.

"I can't believe I actually wasted my time on you. Three years of playing Mr. Nice-Guy for no reason at all. All the guys thought you'd be hot as hell in bed, did you know that?" he asked, clenching her hair tightly.

He waited for her to answer him but all he got were a series of silent tears as they rolled out of her eyes.

"Stop looking at me like that, bitch! You're eyes are fucking creepy…!" he yelled hysterically at her, shaking her about by her hair.

The Hyuuga sobbed, unable to control herself. That's what made him snap. Every time. Without fail. Sobbing. It drove him crazy. He went off the deep end about those kinds of things. It was her crying that sealed her fate each time. Nothing she said or did made him as crazy as her sobbing. She supposed it made him feel guilty. But they way he handled that guilt was one what scared her most. Hinata wasn't even surprised when she felt his knuckled crunching against her cheekbone; instead, she welcomed the darkness that followed it. She was better off there where she could hear, see, or feel.

* * *

She spent hours plastering and smoothing make-up over her bruised skin, doing her damnedest to ensure that the skin there was evenly blended. When she was finally finished, the job was so well done that she looked unreal. Plastic beauty, she liked to call it.

As she moved down the hall of the company, she couldn't help but feel that everyone was staring at her. It was as if they all knew her dirty secret. They all were aware of the fact that her husband was a narisistic bastard who took everything that went wrong in his life out on her. And they were laughing at her. Or worse, pitying her. Despite the change of last name, she was a Hyuuga and Hyuuga were proud people, they did not accept pity. From anyone.

The opal-eyed woman ducked her head as she rounded a corner, doing her best to get to her desk without being seen. She wasn't in the mood for putting on a fake smile; she didn't want to have t pretend for everyone today. All she wanted to do was sit behind her desk and surf the web idly until five rolled around and she had no choice but to return home.

For once, her wish came true and she made it to her desk without disturbance.

"Thank God," she breathed, sliding her hands under her skirt neatly before sitting down.

With a little sigh she powered on her computer and waited for her desktop to load.

"Good morning, Hinata-chan!"

It took all the years of controlling herself to keep her from rolling her eyes at the disgustingly hyper active brunette as she swayed into their office area.

"Morning, Ten Ten-san."

But, as per usual, the Hyuuga was as polite as she always was.

"How are you?"

Was that supposed to be a joke? Was God mocking her?

"I'm fine," she answered softly, even going as far as to add a small smile. "And you?"

Ten Ten giggled like she had a juicy secret and was waiting for someone to ask her about. She took Hinata's polite question as reason enough to spill.

"I'm great. But I know who's not," she said squatting down in front of Hinata's desk, her voice dropping into a whisper.

"Fukumi-san got fired; Friday was his last day."

Hinata's eyes widened only slightly at that. She was glad he was gone. Fukumi had been the most difficult boss in the world. He treated Hinata and Ten Ten like they were his slaves and never appreciated a damn thing the two did for him. He reminded her an awful lot like her husband.

"But what's even better is his replacement is here already. It's like they've been planning on canning him for a while now."

"M-maybe…"

Ten Ten smiled at her. "Aren't you happy?"

_No. _

"Hn. N-no more having to do his dry-cleaning o-or pick up his daughter from oboe practice."

Ten Ten laughed at that. "True. Hopefully, this new guy is a lot better."

For reasons she couldn't explain, Hinata continued the conversation.

"How do you know it's a male?"

"Haruhi in finance told me she saw him this morning. She even went on to say how incredibly hot he is. I'm glad I wore my push-up today. Lucky, lucky," she said with a smile.

Hinata only shook her head a little. Her co-working was a man-eater. She went through men more than she went through panties, and that was saying something.

"Good morning."

The two women looked up from each other upon hearing the deep rumbled of a male's voice.

Ten Ten immediately stood up straight, purposely allowing him to see just how well God had blessed her genetically.

"Good morning," she said sweetly to him, flashing him a flirty smile.

The male, seemingly unaffected merely nodded his head in her direction before turning his gaze onto Hinata expectantly.

"G-Good morning," she said softly, her voice cracking slightly.

Haruhi was right, he was indeed handsome.

He was like something straight out of the magazine their company produced. Hinata vaguely wondered how it was that he wasn't the one on the cover instead of the male they had chosen for this month's issue.

"Hn. Tell me your names."

"Hisagaia* Ten Ten," the brunette offered up first.

The male's dark eyes rolled over to the opal-eyed woman next.

"Uzumaki Hinata," she answered him softly, adding in a small smile.

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"It's nice to meet you, Uchiha-san," Ten Ten chimed in.

"Hn," came Hinata, nodding her head only slightly.

The male merely nodded in return. He didn't seem like one for words.

"I don't expect too much of you two because I prefer to do things myself, however the only thing I ask of you is not to bother me too often."

Ten Ten, seemingly disappointed, pouted a bit before nodding her head. Hinata on the other hand didn't mind too much and nodded her head as well.

And with that, he brushed past Ten Ten and headed for his office, shutting the door quietly behind him.

"Tch… The was a let down."

Hinata smiled a little at her co-working. "Well on the bright side… We d-don't really have to do much…"

Ten Ten turned her gaze on Hinata, her lips pouting a little before she shrugged her shoulders and flounced to her desk.

"I suppose that's true."

Hinata smiled.

She flinched slightly when she felt her pocket vibrating, sending small chills down her thighs. She slid her hand into her pocket, pulling out her cell-phone to peer down at the name flashing on the screen. Fear filled her, her facial expression completely dropping.

Naruto.

"Hn? You okay, Hinata-chan?"

Flinching, she looked up at her co-working and nodded her head a bit. "I-I'm f-fine…"

"You don't look okay… You look sort of… Scared. Who is that? Are you in some kind of trouble?"

"N-no. I –"

Before she could continue, she felt her phone buzzing again in her hand. He hung up and called again.

With her heart in the pit of her stomach, she answered her phone.

"H-Hello?"

"_Why the fuck didn't you answer the first time?_"

"I-I'm sorry…"

"_That's you're problem. You're always fucking sorry –"_

He stopped himself before he could continue. She heard him take a deep breath on the other end of the line, calming himself down before continuing.

"_I'm sorry._"

Hinata was silent for a little while; she knew where he was going with this.

"_It's just… You make me so angry sometimes. I don't want hurt you Hinata, I love you._"

_Liar._

"_I just need you to do what I say so I wont have to hit you okay baby?_"

"Y-yes…"

"_You know I love you, right?_"

Hinata was silent for a few moments before she answered him. "I know."

"_Tell me you love me then._"

She swallowed past the lump that lodged itself in her throat and bit back the tears she felt building in her eyes.

"I l-love you…"

Naruto was quiet for a moment before continuing.

"_Don't cry okay, baby?_"

"Hn."

But it was too late, the tears were already bubbling over in her eyes.

"_Alright. I have to get back to work now, but I just wanted to tell you that. I got you something I think you'll like; I'll give it to you at home._"

"O-okay."

She said nothing else before she heard the soft click of the call ending. She pulled the phone from her ear and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Hinata-chan… Who was –oh my God, Hinata-chan! Your face! What happened to you?"

_Eh?_

The opal eyed woman looked at her co-worker oddly to find that she was giving her the most worried look she had ever seen before. But why? Her eyes happened to glance down when she saw the smeared make-up on her skin. Oh. Shit.

"N-nothing… It's nothing," she explained, rising to her feet and grabbing her purse.

"Hinata-chan, what's going on? Who did that to you?" the woman persisted, locking her hand around her wrist.

"I said it's nothing. I'm fine," she said to her, obviously annoyed as she jerked her arm away from her grasp.

She hated nothing more than being held back.

"Really. I am."

Then hurriedly, she rushed to the ladies' room, her hand cupping her eye to hide the hideous bruise her husband had made.

* * *

**Tell me what you think. Pass or Fail? Review onegaishimasu :]**


	2. Platinum

**Good evening my dear readers! I hope you are all doing well. Thank you so much for coming back to this story to read the second chapter. There's a reason I think I was influenced to write this story. Recently, I was thinking about women in abusive relationships and I was just wondering why in the hell they would stay with a man or even a woman who is hurting them. I think writing this story kind of helped me understand, as well as talking with certain women who have actually been in that sort of situation. But I digress. Please enjoy chapter 2.**

_**All For Love**_

_KawaiixKisses_

_(Muah)_

_Platinum Love_

_

* * *

_

It was beautiful. A platinum chain with diamonds purer than her eyes, fashioned into a heart at the center and worth $12,000. A present befitting the bruise, she supposed. The opal-eyed wife fingered the bracelet half-heartedly. He always did this. Whenever he hit her he'd apologize and present her with some sort of extravagant gift –it was getting old. Naruto seemed to think he could fix everything by flashing fancy gifts in her face. Apparently she wasn't smart enough to realize that it would take more than just that. Apparently she was so shallow that material items were enough to mend her broken heart. Apparently…

Her gaze slid up to meet the cyan gaze of her husband's, his expression hopeful as he watched her face. He used to be handsome, she remembered. He smiled a lot when they were young and hardly ever got angry. He would hold her hand and take her for walks and out on dates, he'd tell her how beautiful she was and how much she meant to him. She remembered the way he would look at her, like she was the only thing in the world to him. He used to tell her romantic stories of princes and princesses and unrequited love that miraculously became returned. He used to be kind and sweet, gentle and caring. She missed her husband –the old him. She missed the years they had together before the beating began, before the insults and the putdowns, before everything turned sour. She missed their old life together. They used to be happy…

Their relationship now was nothing like that, nothing like how it used to be. No longer would he hold her hand or tell her sweet stories, she was lucky to receive indirect compliments from him. All they had now was heartache and bittersweet gifts. Hinata felt as though her heart was breaking all over again as she thumbed the heart pendant.

"It's nice," she said quietly to him.

That seemed to please him for he flashed her a smile she would have thought to be handsome three years ago.

The two sat together in their living room, their knees brushing against one another.

"I'm glad. The woman at Tiffany's told me it was popular among young women so I thought you might like it."

And she would have… three years ago.

Hinata merely nodded her head, turning her gaze away from him once again.

"Here, let me help you put it on."

The blonde took the bracelet from her hands, his fingers brushing lightly against hers, sending goose bumps against her skin. He wasn't as dumb as the stereotype made blondes out to be for he noticed immediately how tense she was. Not only that but she had flinched somewhat when he moved closer to her.

"Relax," he said softly to her as he fastened the bracelet around her wrist.

Easy for him to say –he wasn't the one being beat on now was he?

Hinata wished she had the courage to sass him the way she did in her mind. Oh the many, _many_ things she would tell him. She wished their roles could be reversed; she wanted him to see how it felt. How small it made her feel each time he dragged her around the house, how dirty she felt each time he gave her some fancy gift afterwards like she was some kind of high paid prostitute.

The wife quickly reminded herself that her husband would never ever pay to have sex with _her_. Why would he when he could just take it whenever he wanted to? Vaguely she wondered if it was considered rape if a wife is forced to have sex with her husband… Probably, but of course Naruto wouldn't care about something like that. No, in his mind she belonged to him, something he purchased from her family. He could do whatever he wanted to her whenever he wanted to. She wasn't a person in his eyes, she was a thing; something he could control completely. He wouldn't have it any other way. Hinata tell him 'no'? Never. Hinata stand up for herself? Highly unlikely. Someone else getting involved in their marriage? They'd better not. Hinata was far too afraid of Naruto, of what he would to her if she told anyone to even mention that she was unhappy. Sure, she thought of it, many times over, but the sad truth was, there was no way of escaping him. She was bounded by him, forever and always. 'Til death do them part. Hinata actually thought death would be the only way she'd ever be able to leave her husband, at least then she wouldn't have to feel anything.

"Thank you," she said quietly to him, pulling her wrist back and setting it in her lap.

It was quiet between them for a while, she could feel him staring into the side of her face, but she chose to stay quiet. She didn't want to talk to him. Actually, she'd be glad if he just left. Didn't he have some 'business' to take care of like any other night when he wasn't slamming her into furniture and walls?

"Hinata…"

"Hn?" she asked quietly, staring at her hands.

"Look at me."

Hesitantly her clear gaze shifted to meet his oceanic orbs. He stared at her for a while, studying her face openly. She flinched when he reached out to her, causing his brows to furrow slightly.

"God, Hinata… I'm not going to hurt you," he said to her, a little ticked off.

_Well excuse the fuck outta me…* _she thought bitterly to herself, controlling the urge to roll her eyes. She couldn't help it if her body was afraid of his.

"S-sorry," she apologized to him.

He clasped her face in his hands, his thumbs brushing against her cheeks as his brows relaxed.

"I love you," he said softly to her, leaning in close.

She squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to see him lie to her face any more. He didn't love her. He couldn't possibly love her.

Naruto, taking her shutting her eyes as acceptance, closed the distance between them and pressed his cold, chapped lips against hers.

Her eyes flickered open to meet his deep blue gaze, half lidded and staring back at her. She hadn't wanted to be kissed by him, but she knew better than to tell him no unless she wanted earrings to match her bracelet.

So, she sat there, perfectly still as he moved his lips over hers, parting them with his tongue and ravaging her mouth. Hinata could feel the tears burning at the backs of her eyes as he deepened the demanding kiss, urging small noises from out of her. She had learned how to fake it, how to pretend to receive his passion and if she was to brag she'd say she was pretty damn good at it.

His hands traveled from her face and down her neck, pulling her closer to him until their bodies were pressed against one another. She shut her eyes when his hands traveled down further to cup her left breast. It took almost all of her will to keep herself form cringing –she hated when he touched her like that. His hands continued their southern journey until they met with her thighs, grapping them tightly and swinging her body over his so that she straddled him. Then, just as she predicted he stood with her and carried her up the stairs and to their bedroom, his lips moving roughly against hers. When they reached his intended destination, he tossed her down on the bed and climbed over her, his eyes roaming over her body hungrily.

His greedy hands set to work on her shirt, popping off a few buttons with his hasty pace, desperate to get to what lie beneath it.

Hinata on the other hand wasn't as excited as her husband seemed to be; her eyes stared blankly at the ceiling. She hated the feel of his cold, callused hands as they roamed over her flesh, she hated the feel of his breath falling against her skin, she hated this, and she hated him.

* * *

"Another gift huh?" Ino questioned, arching her brow at the dainty little thing that dangled from Hinata's wrist.

The shy woman nodded her head, smiling a little at her friend.

"It's nice, ne?" she said to her, lifting her wrist to show it off.

"Hn."

Ino eyed her friend for a moment, not believing the charade she was putting up for even a moment. Whenever Hinata began acting weird, she'd show up a few days later with some fancy new gift. It was sort of expected now.

"That's the third gift he's given you this month," Sakura chimed in.

That was the third time he hit her that month.

"He must really love you," Ino said, turning her spoon around her cup.

_Yeah right… _Hinata thought to herself.

"Yes."

Sakura grinned suddenly as a dirty thought passed through her mind.

"She must be giving him something extra to be receiving that kind of special treatment…"

Ino laughed at that while Hinata turned a few shades of red. She wasn't giving it so much as he was taking it.

"Ne, Hinata, tell me what I have to do to get Lee to spend so much on me," Sakura giggled, nudging the shy woman in the arm.

_Let him use your face as a punching bag?_

Hinata merely smiled at her friend, her cheeks still filled with color. "I d-don't know what to say Sakura… N-Naruto just likes giving me th-things…"

_Yeah, black eyes._

"I can tell," she said smiling at her friend. "If only I could find a guy like yours."

"You can have him," Hinata said quietly, earning herself a questioning gaze from her two friends.

"What do you mean, Hinata? Surely you're happy?" came Ino, ready for Hinata to finally tell them the truth.

The opal-eyed woman looked up at her friends and smiled softly.

"Of course I am. J-just sometimes his love is a l-little too… intense…"

That's one way of wording it.

"Ah," came Ino once again, nodding her head slowly.

"Well I'll gladly take him off your hands for you, Hinata. Hell, we could switch, I'll take Naruto-kun and you take Lee."

Hinata had half a mind to agree to the exchange. Naruto would probably treat Sakura a whole lot better than he did her. He told her to his face that he wished he married the pinkette instead of her. Besides, Hinata had always thought Lee to be nice, a little hyperactive, but it was far better than the narcissistic bastard she called her husband. At least Lee would make her feel like she mattered; she'd seen the way he treated Sakura. Hinata would literally kill for something like that.

The dark-haired woman merely smiled and offered a soft giggle to her friend's words.

"I'll arrange the paperwork," she joked softly.

If only it wasn't a joke.

* * *

"Uzumaki-san."

Hinata looked up from her computer to watch as her boss came walking out of his office and over to her.

"Did you make those copies I asked for?"

"Oh, yes… here you are," she said softly, handing the stack of papers to him.

"Thanks."

And with that he disappeared into his office once again.

Uchiha Sasuke hadn't been lying when he told them he wouldn't be asking for much from them. The only thing he had asked of her the entire day was for her to make the copies of a prospective article for the magazine –other than that he did everything himself as he said he would.

"Ne, you don't think he's going to fire us do you?" came Ten Ten's voice from the other side of the room.

Hinata turned her pearly gaze from her closed door of her boss's office to her brown haired friend.

"I d-don't know…"

It did seem likely however. The man didn't seem to need them, unlike Fukumi-san who didn't seem to know how to do anything for himself. Hinata was just glad he didn't ask them to wipe his ass for him, though it did seem like something the bastard would want. Honestly, working for Uchiha Sasuke was like having a vacation.

"I hope not; I need this job. You're so lucky you don't even have to work."

That was true. Naruto made enough were she didn't have to work if she didn't want to. At 27, it was unbelievable to her that he was able to land a job as a politician.

"Uzumaki-san probably makes a lot, doesn't he?"

"H-hn…" Hinata answered shyly.

Ten Ten let out a small sigh. "Must be nice having a husband who can afford to buy you whatever you want. That's a nice bracelet by the way…"

Hinata blushed lightly.

"It's not that nice," she said softly to herself mostly.

Ten Ten arched a brow at her as she set her hand in her palm.

"How so? You don't even have to be here right now. You could be off at some spa, getting a massage or something, hell you all can probably afford to take a few trips every year too."

Hinata only smiled softly. It was true; they did live a comfortable life… well material wise anyway.

"Why do you work, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata was hesitant at first. She didn't want to tell her that she did it so that she wouldn't be forced to kill herself staying in that house all day.

"Just… Something to do I g-guess… Besides I like f-fashion so…"

"Ah…" came Ten Ten, drumming her fingers lightly against the desk.

"Uzumaki-san."

Hinata looked up from Ten Ten to see her boss who stuck his head out of the door –it seemed a bit out of character for him and made her want to smile a little, but she didn't.

"Hn?"

"Come here for a second."

Nodding, she stood to her feet and began walking over to his office.

"Shut the door," he told her when she made it into his office.

She did as she was told and shut the door quietly.

Her opal eyes roamed over his back as she watched him. His eyes were fixed on the paper in his hands, probably reading carefully. Then suddenly he looked up at her, quietly studying her for a moment or two.

"Tell me, how does this sound."

"Eh?"

She stared at her boss a little confused.

"How does it sound? You're an every day woman, tell me, would you want to buy this if you read the article?"

He handed the paper to her and waited patiently for her response.

Nervously, her white eyes looked down at the paper in her hand, training on the words she found there.

'…_and lemon is surely enough to make your skin glow.'_

'…_.every day for a week and you'll see results'_

'…_to his Japan in three years.'_

The dark-haired woman looked up at her boss.

"H-honestly?"

"Hn."

"It s-seems a little b-bogus… Onions and Lemons? On a g-girl's face s-sounds ridiculous… I wouldn't b-buy it…"

"I didn't think so."

"H-Hn… W-well if that's a-all then…"

"No. Actually, I need you to run this over to the author and tell them I said its crap."

While surprised that he actually needed her for something she nodded her head and left his office with the paper in hand.

"Sooo… What did he say? He didn't fire you did he?" came Ten Ten as the shy woman left the office.

"N-No… he uh… asked me to run an errand."

Ten Ten's brow rose at that. The man had clearly stated he wouldn't be asking them for much. Well, at least that meant they wouldn't be getting fired.

Without waiting on the brunette to say anything else, Hinata headed off to find the author of the article.

"Uchiha-san told me to tell you th-that that article is unacceptable," she said nervously upon finding the author, Uue Seji.

The male stared up at her before snatching the paper away from her hands, mumbling cuss words.

"Did he say _why_?"

The woman fidgeted slightly before answering him.

"W-well he asked me t-to read it and I –"

"So _you're _the one who doesn't like it," he accused, "what makes you an expert hm?"

"I j-just… he a-asked me to –"

"To what? Why would he ask for your opinion? You expect me to believe that? Do I look stupid to you?"

Hinata only shook her head. The angered writer shoved the paper back in her face.

"You tell him I said to read it himself this time and _not _to have his assistant do it. That's what you are right? The hell do you think you are…?" he yelled at her, verbally pushing her away.

"Coming down here telling me about my writing like you know shit… The fuck you doing still standing here? I said go!"

Hinata nodded her head before turning and hurrying back to her desk, trying her hardest to keep the tears she felt burning the backs of her eyes.

"Hinata-chan? Are you alright?" came Ten Ten's voice.

The opal-eyed woman nodded her head, drying her eyes with the back of her sleeve.

"Hn."

"Uzumaki-san, did you do what I asked you to?"

Hinata looked up from her desk to meet the onyx gaze of her employer. The male stared down at her expectantly, waiting for an answer to his question.

"N-no, I… s-sorry."

The male let out an exasperated sigh, obviously annoyed by the assistant.

"Of course not… I should have known better. Hand me the paper," he said to her, holding his hand out for it.

Nervously, she nodded her head and handed the paper to her boss, earning herself a small grunt from him as he snatched the paper from her and stalked down the hall.

When he returned he looked thoroughly ticked off; his brows crunched together and his lips pressed into a thin line. Guilt and shame washed over her at the thought of disappointing him. It wasn't just for the simple fact that he was her boss, Hinata simply hated to disappoint anyone –she was a textbook people-pleaser.

"You okay?"

Hinata looked up to find Ten Ten watching her worriedly. Hinata merely smiled and nodded her head, not wanting to bother Ten Ten with her personal issues.

"I'm f-f-fine."

It was obvious that Ten Ten didn't believe a thing that was coming out of the pale-eyed girl's mouth. The brunette knew better than to think that Hinata was okay. The frail woman was obviously going through something… There were the bruises and the way she flinched or backed up just slightly whenever anyone got near her, and then now, the girl looked as if she was ready to break down into tears. Had what who ever she had spoke said something that horrible where she would need to cry over it? Maybe… but still, it wasn't just today, it was every day. The poor girl looked like she would shatter in a million tiny pieces at any given moment.

"Uh-huh…"

* * *

"You seem distant…"

Hinata looked up from her plate to find her husband staring at her, his blue eyes watching her.

"S-sorry," she said quietly, turning her eyes back to her plate. The female began pushing her broccoli around the plate, obviously uninterested in the green vegetable.

"You don't have to be so afraid of me," he said to her at last, unable to take the silence that had fallen between them.

The dark-haired woman nodded her head; one swift down and up motion, before sliding the broccoli past her lips and into her mouth.

Naruto stared at his wife, trying to burn a whole through the wall she had created between her and himself. She wouldn't let him in; she wouldn't let him see her. Often, he felt like he didn't even know who she was. He was living with a stranger. She always seemed so far away from him. Even when they made love, he could tell she wished she were some place else. She didn't like him; he could feel it.

"Hinata."

She looked up at him, her eyes cold and vacant, as if her soul wasn't there. "Yes?"

He watched her for a moment or two, unsure why exactly he had called her name. What had he wanted to say to her?

"I was thinking…" he trailed off. His wife merely waited patiently for him to continue.

"Maybe we could take a trip… go some place nice."

Hinata watched her husband. Why was he suddenly being so nice to her? Usually he didn't want to spend unnecessary time with her.

"I-I don't know if I can get off w-work…"

Naruto frowned.

"What the hell do you mean you don't think you can get off work? I didn't even say when the trip would happen." To him it seemed as though she didn't even want to spend time with him. What the hell was her problem? Here he was, trying to do something nice for her, yet all she did was reject him. "You're an ungrateful bitch, you know that, don't you?"

Hinata gave him no answer, she knew better. During times like these, anything she could say would only serve to make him even more upset than he already was.

"Answer me, damn it!"

Or silence could also backfire and upset him. Honestly, it was no way she could win with Naruto. What was she supposed to say to that? What would the right answer be? Yes, she was an ungrateful bitch? No, she wasn't an ungrateful bitch? Both ways only seemed like things that would anger him.

"N-Naruto I –"

Before she could finish her sentence he was on his feet and stalking over to her. His fingers delved into her hair forcefully, pushing her head back. Her opal eyes stared up at him, watching the ocean-like orbs burn with anger. She could feel his hot breath falling against her skin, practically burning her flesh. The wife could feel tears burning at the backs of her eyes, but she knew better than to let them fall.

He pressed his forehead against hers, looking down into her eyes. Slowly, his grip on her hair became less forceful, less vicious. She could feel her husband calming down slightly.

"I love you," he whispered softly.

Hinata shut her eyes; preventing the tears she felt building up from sliding down.

"I love you too," she lied.

* * *

**_... So... Tell me what you think? Review onegaishimasu!_**

**_Oh and..._**

**_*This line is something I stole from a friend of mine; he says it all the time and it cracks me up. I can hear him now "Well excuse the fuck outta me..." rolling his eyes and what not lol _**


	3. Beautiful

**All For Love**

KawaiixKisses

(Muah)

_Beautiful_

_

* * *

_

_The air was brisk and the hour ungodly and yet Uzumaki Hinata was awake. She rushed outside of her home, her long blue-black hair blowing behind her as she moved. Goosebumps bubbled against the porcelain skin of her arms as the night air gushed around her. The white tank top and dark purple sweat pants she donned weren't enough to protect her against the cold night air as it pressed violently against her skin. _

_Her heart hammered in her chest, as her bare feet hit the wet, cold ground. She had to get away, she had to escape. _

"_HINATA!"_

_Her heart beat wildly as she heard him screaming her name. No. She couldn't let him catch her._

"_GET BACK HERE DAMN IT! I LOVE YOU!"_

"_Lair!" she shouted as she forced her body to move quicker._

_The wife rounded a corner, some how finding herself at her office. She ran down the isle, skipping over stacks of magazines that lay askew on the ground. She could feel his fingers brushing against her back, causing her to flinch away and force her body to move faster than it already was._

"_Just leave me alone!" she cried, water filling in her eyes, blurring her vision momentarily._

"_DAMN IT HINATA! YOU'RE MINE!"_

_She screamed loudly, her lugs threatening to explode as she turned another corner. She could see her desk approaching –should she hide there? No, that was stupid._

'_Think Hinata… Think!' she screamed at herself, her thoughts pressing down on her brain._

_Suddenly, the door to her boss's office swung open and she dashed through it, slamming the door behind her._

"_Hinata! Hinata!" _

_She could hear him screaming as he began pounding at the door, trying his hardest to force it open._

"_What are you doing here?"_

_The opal eyed woman looked up to find her boss staring down at her. His dark gaze clashed with her clear one. _

"_I –"_

She woke with a start, her body jerking upwards from her bed. The wife looked around her room, slightly confused for a few moments. What the…? Her opal gaze slowly fell on her husband who lay naked beside her. The memories of the night before came rushing back to her, making her stomach churn.

Slowly, as to not wake him, she slid out of bed, ducking the mirrors as she headed towards the en suite bathroom. Hurriedly, she scrubbed her skin clean, frowning at the small red bruises he left on her. She hated when he did that. She hated feeling like she was his and there was nothing she could do about it. She had to find a way to leave him.

Freshly clean, she walked out of the shower and pulled her hair back into a bun. The wife could feel eyes staring heatedly at her back, causing her to bite nervously into her lip.

"Good morning," she said softly to her husband, turning her head to make eye contact briefly then back around.

Naruto was silent for a moment or two as he watched her pulling on her panties. He remembered the first time he had ever made love to her, she was so shy about showing him her panties but as the years wore on them she didn't seem to notice as much anymore. Pride swelled within him as he noticed the red hickeys that were scattered across her neck and back. He had made sure to make last night enjoyable for her –he owed her.

"Morning," he said to her, sitting up so that his back pressed against the backboard of their bed.

Hinata was silent, not wanting to make conversation really. Instead, the porcelain woman dressed herself, pulling on a pair of blue jeans followed by her bra and a yellow sweater. Quietly, she let her hair down from its bun and dried it with her towel, satisfied by the loose waves that hung down her back.

"What are you going to do today?" she heard him ask her.

"Work," she answered softly.

"Are you kidding me? It's Saturday! Can't you take off?"

"N-no…"

"This is unbelievable. What if I wanted to spend time with you? Would that have been out of the question?"

"Naruto…please… Its early…" she pleaded softly.

Her husband was silent for a moment or two, watching as she slid a belt through the loops of her jeans. She couldn't be seriously talking to him. Not like that.

"What did you say to me?"

Hinata nibbled her bottom lip gently as she fastened her belt, lengthening the silence between them.

"I d-don't want to f-fight Naruto…"

He stared at her back, watching as she slid on he bracelet purchased for her. Often, he felt like he couldn't understand his wife. Sure he messed up every once in a while, but then he'd work tremendously long to repair it but with no positive response from her. Most of the time she just said whatever she thought he wanted to hear and what would shut him up. She didn't like talking to him it seemed. The blonde male frowned a bit as he watched his wife.

Hinata on the other hand was grateful when he gave no response. However, she could feel him staring bullet holes into her back, perhaps keeping himself from lashing out on her like he wanted to.

"What time will you be home?"

Hinata would have loved to tell him whenever she felt like it – she was grown woman damn it, she didn't have to explain herself to him – but she knew better than that; she didn't need her husband snapping her neck so early in the morning.

"Around four," she answered him.

Naruto, seeming to accept this answer, nodded his head and relaxed in bed.

"Good. I want to take you to dinner."

The wife suppressed the urge to ask him why, instead she merely shook her head.

"Okay."

She was doing it again. She was only saying 'okay' because that's what he wanted to hear and not because she generally wanted to be with him. What the hell was her problem? The husband watched as his wife dusted on a bit of make-up to her skin, adding a pretty pink to her cheeks to give it a bit of color. She was beautiful, he noted, but of course he wouldn't tell her that to her face. She wouldn't appreciate the compliment.

* * *

"Okay, Uzumaki-san, this time _please_ don't screw it up. All you have to do is hold the record button, so simple even you can do it."

Hinata nodded her head nervously, her fingers clasping around the silver recorder in her hand. Her boss stared down at her, annoyance evident in his eyes. She was skittish. Sometimes it looked like she would fall apart if he said the wrong thing to her. Often the Uchiha found himself wanting to apologize or even be _nice _to her. To him, Uzumaki was someone he felt needed to be protected, taken care of even. Too bad he wasn't the one for the job – he'd let someone else handle that, in the mean time he had more pressing matters to attend to.

"Alright, lets go," he said to her as he began walking down the hall to the conference room.

The assistant began following behind her boss, forcing her short legs to keep up with his long strides. Entering the room, they both sat at the circular table, Hinata beside her boss.

Silence stretched between them as they awaited their guest to be interviewed. Uchiha Sasuke was a man of very few words – that was perfectly okay with Hinata because wasn't really in the mood for talking. Instead, her mind was focused on her husband and what the night held in store for the two of them. She was not at all looking forward to their date later on – she'd rather swallow a razor blade than spend unnecessary time with him. At least they weren't going to be alone… she wouldn't have to deal with him feeling up on her. Unknowingly the assistant let out a tired sigh, earning herself a questioning look from her boss.

"S-sorry…"

"Hn," came Sasuke, turning his gaze away from his assistant.

What was her problem? Sasuke couldn't help the curiosity that surged through him. Perhaps she was bored waiting on their guest – if so she could have to learn patience especially in the field of work she was in.

Suddenly the door to the conference room swung open, alerting them to the presence of their guest.

Fuwa Sho.*

The blonde haired pop star strutted in, his face a mask of perfect boredom. He was as glamorous in person as he was on TV, Hinata noted. Behind him was his manager who flashed Sasuke and Hinata both a pretty smile.

"Good of you to join us, Fuwa-san," Sasuke said, rising to his feet.

Hinata joined her boss, standing nervously. All the years she worked for their magazine she never once met a celebrity.

"Hn," was the star's nonchalant response.

The celebrity sat down in the chair across from Sasuke and Hinata, giving them the queue to take their seats as well.

"Okay. First question – " Sasuke began and Hinata hit the record button. "Where did you grow up?"

"Kyoto."

"Favorite color?"

"None."

"What kind of girls are you interested in?"

The pop star slowly contemplated his answer. "I'm into the girl next-door type – simple. Someone who doesn't through themselves all over me and will be able to hold an actual conversation."

Sasuke didn't believe a word of that. From the tabloids, Fuwa Sho was depicted as the run-of-the-mill playboy. But he continued anyway, he simply wouldn't use that question in the printed interview.

The session went on for another hour, Sasuke asking the questions that were sure to be on the minds of just about every teenaged girl's mind in Japan. Hinata wondered vaguely if her boss felt at all embarrassed asking any of those things, especially the opposite-sex related ones. But Sasuke didn't seem to be at all affected by the content of the questions – this was all business to him.

"Okay, thank you for your time Fuwa-san," Sasuke said after some time had passed, rising to his feet and giving Hinata the O.K. to end the recording.

"Hn."

That was all the singer said before exulting the room, his manager following behind him, lecturing him quietly on his manners.

"Celebrities…" Sasuke said with a sigh as he began straightening the pile of papers that lay askew on the table.

Hinata gave no response to that, she merely waited for further directions from her boss.

"Lets go," he said to her finally, gathering the papers into his hands as he began walking out of the conference room.

The assistant nodded her head and followed him out, watching his back as they moved down the hall together.

There was something about him, something she wasn't sure she liked or disliked but intrigued her nonetheless. He wasn't exactly nice to her nor was he unpleasant – he was actually indifferent towards her. Yet some how she was drawn towards him. Hinata couldn't explain it. She knew what she felt wasn't romantic nor was it the opposite of that; she supposed it was curiosity and maybe something else that she couldn't quite name just yet.

He was the opposite of Naruto, the exact opposite, she realized after some time. Well, the opposite of the Naruto she had fallen in love with and married. Naruto then had been kind and open-hearted, loud and friendly. Her boss however, was stoic and distant, brash and sometimes a tad arrogant. Yet she did not find him unbearable, he didn't at all offend her. Instead he sparked her interest. She found herself wanting to talk to him, but was unsure of what she should say. What would be the appropriate thing to say to a man such as Uchiha Sasuke? Hinata wasn't sure… In fact she wasn't sure why she wanted to talk to him in the first place. There was like this magnetic force, pulling her towards him.

She wouldn't admit it to anyone but herself, but often she found herself thinking of him. Nothing special really, nothing truly worth mentioning but fleeting thoughts – vague wonderings really. And that dream the night before, what had that been about? Sure, she had dreamed of running away from Naruto millions of times, but never had anyone but Naruto and herself been in the dream. Finding Sasuke at the end of it was slightly alarming.

Why was it she couldn't stop thinking of him?

He hadn't said anything special to her, done anything either to provoke such thoughts of him. The assistant was confident she didn't have feelings for her stoic boss either – she didn't even know him. All she knew of him were her silent observations which she hadn't even been aware that she had been making. It was odd.

Sasuke could feel his assistant staring at his back but decided to ignore it. He was used to females watching him and chalked it all up to sexual attraction. Honestly, he was not at all offended by her sexual curiosity involving him. Like any other man he found great pride in it. He would allow her to continue staring, possibly even fantasizing about him, after all what she did with her eyes and imagination was no business of his.

"Uzumaki-san," he said suddenly coming to a halt.

Hinata, unprepared for it, bumped into him, her front colliding with his back. She stumbled backwards, heat rushing to her face.

"S-s-sorry, Uchiha-san!" she apologized hurriedly, her hands shaking nervously as he turned around to face her.

He looked amused, she noted, the corners of his lips turning up only slightly.

"It's fine, relax Uzumaki-san."

Hinata nodded her head nervously, unsure of what to do with herself now.

Sasuke stared down at her, greatly amused by her antics. The poor woman looked like se was going to explode into a fit of nervousness at any given moment. It was as he thought; he had to be careful with her because she would indeed burst into a million pieces if he said the wrong thing to her.

"Do you want to get some lunch?" he asked her finally, sliding his hands into his pockets, his ebony orbs watching her.

Hinata's eyes widened slightly as she looked up at her boss. Lunch? Lunch. The word seemed foreign to her, as if she never heard it in her entire life. She was silent for a moment or two, picking her brain for the definition of the word 'lunch'. Lunch. Food. Right. Okay.

"I-I-I can't…" she said finally.

His brow arched slightly. She couldn't? What did she mean she couldn't? A woman had just turned him down, that was a first. It was rather perplexing actually.

"Why not?" he asked her, extremely curious of the excuse she would give him.

"I have to meet with my hu-husband."

Husband? His eyes shifted to her left hand to spot a fancy engagement ring and wedding band, diamonds sparkling and glistening against her finger. Funny. He never noticed that.

"So I see," he said at last.

"S-sorry."

"It's fine really, hand over the recorder and you're free to go."

Hinata nodded her head and gave him the recorder, unable to ignore the electricity that sparked against her skin when her fingers brushed against his.

"Hinata."

Eh?

The opal-eyed beauty turned her head to spy her husband making his way down the hall towards her – he looked angry. What was he doing there?

"Who is this," he asked her.

Eh?

She turned her gaze to her boss, only then noticing that they were still touching. Nervously, she pulled her hand back.

"Th-this is my boss, Naruto, Uchiha-san."

Naruto stared at the male who had been previously speaking with his wife. They were almost the same in height and build; the only differences were their contrasting hair and eyes.

"Uzumaki Naruto. Hinata's husband," he introduced himself, holding his hand out to the ebony haired male.

"Uchiha Sasuke," her boss replied, giving his hand a firm shake before letting it go.

The two men seemed to have a staring contest before Hinata broke the silence at last.

"Wh-what are you going here, Naruto?"

The blonde turned his gaze onto his wife, his brow creasing in annoyance.

"You're late so I came to find out why."

Late? It was only – her gaze shifted to the clock on the wall – six thirty. Shit. He was going to kill her, for real this time perhaps.

"I'm s-sorry, Naruto, I w-wasn't aware of the time I – "

"It's fine baby. Are you done working now? I'd like to get to the restaurant soon."

Hinata turned her gaze to Sasuke who gave her a small head nod. "Y-yes."

"Good. Let's go then. It was a pleasure to meet you, Uchiha-san," said Naruto, clasping his wife's hand in his and pulling her away.

The opal-eyed woman tossed him a glance over her shoulder before turning away once more and heading off with her husband.

Well. That was odd. The Uchiha could sense the tension between his assistant and her husband the moment he appeared. She turned into a nervous, stuttering wreck the moment the blonde showed up – more so than she usually was. She was definitely afraid of him. Sasuke could tell. But why? Sure, he seemed a bit… much before and Hinata looked like the type to scare easily, but that didn't warrant her fear of her husband. And that look she gave him a while ago, it was like she was pleading with him, begging him to do something, help her, protect her maybe. Something was definitely going on with the Uzumaki couple.

* * *

They sat quietly in Naruto's car, the male squeezing the stirring wheel tightly until his knuckles turned white.

"You couldn't call me?" he asked finally.

Hinata stared down at her hands, biting her bottom lip before quietly answering. "I w-was unaware of the t-time."

"That's bullshit, you know it right," he said to her, surprisingly calm.

Hinata squeezed her eyes shut, forbidding the tears she felt building in her eyes from falling.

"Look at me, Hinata. Look at me damn it!" he shouted at her, grabbing her by her chin and forcing her head to face him.

Her white eyes snapped open, glazed over with tears.

"Stop fucking crying. Stop it."

She sniffled and blinked her eyes, trying to force back the tears.

"Sometimes I feel like you do these things purposely to piss me off. You love getting under my skin, don't you? Don't you?" he shouted at her.

"N-no I –"

"Don't fucking lie to me! Why is it that you'd rather be anywhere but with me? You'd do anything to get away from me wouldn't you? Wouldn't you?"

"N-no Naruto I –"

"You what? You're _sorry_? You _love _me? Give me a break, Hinata! Save that shit for the birds… What were you doing with him, huh? What were you two up to why you couldn't remember what fucking time it was?"

Hinata stared up at her husband. He was enraged, that much was for sure. His eyes were bloodshot and crazy, his teeth bared at her as he waited for her to answer him.

"I… we… we were…"

"Bitch you better answer me. 3… 2…"

"We had an interview! I-I… there were so m-many qu-questions, Naruto. I-I was a-annoyed. I w-wanted to leave, h-honest to God I did! You have to be-believe me…" she pleaded with him.

Naruto released her chin and stared at her. His wife was beautiful as scared as she was. Even with her teary-eyes and skin paled in fear, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his entire life. If only she loved him the way he loved her. If only she felt the way he did, saw it the way he saw it, they could be happy then. After _he _died, they just hadn't been the same. She seemed so cold, so distant from him. He wanted to connect with her but she wouldn't let him in, wouldn't let him see her anymore. Who was she?

"You are a liar," he said evenly. "Why should I believe you?"

"Because I-I… I love you," she said to him.

He knew it was a lie. A beautiful, tragic lie.

He leaned in and kissed her, bruising her lips with his. She responded to him as he would have ordinarily wanted her to, her fingers curling in his hair and her lips moving under his. For a moment he forgot that he was angry, forgot that their marriage was falling apart. He pulled back eventually, staring down at her face.

"That's not good enough," he said to her at last, his brows crunching together.

It wasn't. She didn't love him, all she did was lie to him. All she did was try to please him, avoid having to deal with him. She wanted nothing to do with him honestly and it pissed me off.

"I can't even stomach looking at you half of the time."

Hinata bit back her sobs. Her husband was cruel. Why? Why was he doing these things to her? Why couldn't he just leave her be? Leave her alone? Let her continue her life without him? She wouldn't even ask for a divorce, she knew how badly that would look on his political career, but she needed to be away from him. She didn't want this anymore.

"Naruto I –" she started, tears sliding out of her opal orbs and down her cheeks.

Suddenly she couldn't stop it. The sobs kept coming and coming, her chest rising and falling hysterically. She blew it. He was going to hit her. He was going to shut her up. She was having a panic attack, her heart began beating furiously and sweat broke out against her skin.

"Cut it out damn it! Just stop! Stop!"

And just like she knew he would, he swung at her, his fist crunching against her nose and lip, blood sweeping from her nostril and gums, sending her body against the door, her head slamming against window and her eyes rolling back. Darkness followed.

* * *

***Haha yes I did use "Fuwa Sho" from Skip Beat. Lol I couldn't think of any japanese pop stars nor did I feel like making up a name so I used a fictional japanese pop star lol get over it.**

**Anyway, hope you all liked that chapter. I feel that it was sort of boring, but then I feel that way about all of my stories, I just can't bring myself to love them yet. I think once they are complete I will fall in love with them. If you're looking for the next chapter to CME rest assured, I will try to get that up either tomorrow (10-20-10) or thursday (10-21-10). Review onegaishimasu.**


	4. Wife

**_My lovelies! Oh how I missed you all! Love and sprinkles and sunshine for you all! La di da di da! Hahaha please excuse my moment of weirdness, I was going to explode if I didn't do that. Anyway... This chapter is for my friend "Hinata6" (her late bday present) - omgsh you guys she is such a good writer. If you haven't heard of her, which is a shame, look her up! But before then... da da di da da da da!_**

**All For Love**

_KawaiixKisses_

_(Muah)_

Wife

* * *

He was right to be suspicious it seems. His dark eyes studied the bruised face of his employee, watching as she did her damnedest to keep him from seeing, despite the fact that she had already been caught. What he couldn't understand though was why. Why would she want to hide that? Why wouldn't she try and seek help? Surely she had family who would fight for her? Get her out of the relationship? It wasn't at all making sense to him.

"Uzumaki-san?"

The assistant only remained quiet, not wanting to answer him – she sat there pretending that wasn't her name. She wasn't _Uzumaki _she was _Hyuuga. _Funny. Before her marriage to Naruto, Hinata was delighted by the idea of losing her maiden name, she wanted to feel separated from her family and all the grief they had bestowed upon her.

"Uzumaki-san. Talk."

Her opal gaze met her boss's reluctantly.

"It's… it's n-none of you b-business Uchiha-san."

Sasuke stared at his assistant. True, it wasn't any of his business, but what was he supposed to do? Sit around knowing she's being beaten up by her husband and do nothing about it? He might be indifferent to a lot of things but he was still human, he still felt the need to help someone when that person so obviously needed to be helped. And Hinata… she was screaming for it. She needed someone to stand up for her because based on that nasty bruise covering her eye she couldn't stand up for herself.

"So?" he countered her at last.

Her brow wrinkled slightly as she stared at him. "S-so it r-rude to mind other people's b-b-business," she informed him.

Uncharacteristically, her boss shrugged his shoulders in nonchalance. "Has that ever stopped anyone before?"

Hinata didn't know what to say to that, instead she fixed her gaze on her lap once again, studying her thumbs as they spun around each other.

"Look, I know it must be hard for you to talk about this, but I can't help you unless you help me first," he said to her, trying to coax a response from her.

The fair-skinned woman remained quiet. She didn't want to be having this conversation with anyone – she was embarrassed, ashamed. Look what he did to her. He tore her down. Knocked her off her high horse. She was once a proud Hyuuga like the rest of her family, but thanks to _him, _thanks to Naruto she was reduced to the woman she was now. She was pathetic.

"I… I d-don't want any help."

Sasuke's eyes widened. What the hell did she just say? Did she not know what her face looked like? Did she not own any mirrors or were they all broken? Why on earth wouldn't she want help?

"I-if you don't mind I'd l-like to get back to w-work."

Sasuke couldn't believe it. She was serious. Was she that afraid? Sasuke had met the man and he didn't look too threatening to him – sure he had been an ass, but not threatening. But how was he to know? Abusers didn't have one set profile; they came in all shapes and sizes. If Sasuke remembered right, Uzumaki's husband looked oddly familiar, like he had seen him somewhere before, on TV perhaps.

"Sure."

Hinata nodded her head and rose to her feet, smoothing her bangs over her eye.

The male sat back in his chair and watched as she left his office, reflecting on what had just happened between them.

It was like any other morning at the office and Sasuke had a shit-load of work to get done. He busied himself all morning shuffling through papers, running back and forth from his office to the copy room and back, trying to make the deadline for this month's issue.

_The male had been on his way to the cop room once more, his long legs allowing him to dash down the halls until he mistakenly bumped into a body much smaller than his own. The woman stumbled back slightly before falling back on her bottom with a soft groan._

"_My apologizes," he offered to her, holding his hand out to help her up._

_That's when he noticed her, Uzumaki. She looked up at him from the floor, her hair falling away from her face to reveal the nasty bruise that surrounded her eye. It was a stark contrast to her pale skin, the bruise a dark purple and red, her eye swollen and puffy. It looked awful._

"_Uzumaki-san," he exclaimed softly, kneeling down in front of her. "Who did this to you?" he asked, reaching out to push her hair out of the way with his hand._

_She flinched away from his hand like he had some nasty flesh-eating-disease. Why was he surprised? With a bruise that awful, he'd be flinching away from people as well. _

_His assistant shook her head a bit, proclaiming that she was okay and pulling herself to her feet._

"_I'm fine, Uchiha-san," she said softly once on her feet, smoothing her hair into place and patting the dirt from her bottom._

_He should have known something was up with her from the moment she walked into the office that morning. In the months he had worked there he had never seen her with her hair down and for her to be wearing as she was for two days straight now should have sparked his interest. _

"_Like hell you are," he breathed. "Come with me."_

_He took hold of her wrist and began pulling her towards his office._

"_U-Uchiha-san… Uchiha-san… P-please… let me go, let me go," she demanded softly, tugging her arm away from him._

_Her voice sounded desperate, as if she were on the verge of crying. Immediately, he let go of her. He hadn't thought about the affect him grabbing on her would have had. Of course she wouldn't like it, the woman so obviously had been smacked around._

"_Just come with me, okay?"_

_Nervously, she nodded her head and followed quietly behind him._

She had looked so afraid then, much as she had when her husband had come to back her up a few days ago. Sasuke wondered vaguely the abuse had been going on for. Did anyone else know? Her friends maybe? He thought about sending her home early but figured the safest place for her to be was probably at work.

Maybe he should give her more hours – more time away from home? Sasuke shook his head at the thought. Her husband had seemed upset by the idea of her working on a Saturday, more hours would probably make him twice as upset. What should he do then? For some reason the male felt that protecting his assistant was something he was obligated to do. Since he knew for a fact that she was being abused it was his responsibility to do something about it. Or something like that.

The Uchiha let out a tired sigh, sitting back in his chair. What was he to do about Uzumaki? The woman was proving to be a lot more trouble than he really wanted to do with. If he thought he was having a hard time thinking of anything other than her than he was definitely going to have a hard time thinking of anything other than her and that hideous bruise.

* * *

Hinata stared at herself in the mirror of her en suite bathroom after work that same day. Her opal eyes were glued on her reflection, memorizing every last imperfection she could find. Her nose was too thin, her skin too fair, her eyes too wide. Then there was the huge bruise Naruto – her husband – had left behind.

She was ugly.

Her eyes filled with tears as she stared at her reflection. She had long ago rid herself of her clothes and pulled her long black-silk hair into a messy bun at the top of her head. Her opal eyes scanned her neck and her forearms, gazing in horrified wonder at the many, many bruises her husband had given to her. They varied in color, some red, some purple, some blue and some a disgusting green.

"Why?" she whispered softly to her reflection, tears spilling out of her eyes and sliding down her cheeks.

Why did he hate her so much? She went over it over and over in her mind yet she could find no answer? What had she done to deserve such a man? What god did she anger? The battered wife sobbed, her shoulders hunching forward slightly as heavy, heart-felt groans of despair slipped from her throat.

The woman shook her head a bit, sliding onto the floor of her bathroom, her bottom sitting on the cold tiles. She drew her knees up to her chin, resting her cheek on top of it as more tears shed from her eyes, her body shaking uncontrollably.

"Hinata?"

Her head shot up, her tears ceasing. Her husband was home.

"Shit," she swore softly, pulling herself up from the ground and racing to the bathroom door.

Quickly, she shut it and pressed her back to the warm wood. Nervously she bit her bottom lip, her brain processing what was going on. It was early, way too early for him to be home.

"Hinata? Where are you?" he called out to her once more.

The wife pushed herself from the door, rushing to the closet to pull out her robe and shrug it on, drying her eyes with her puffy white sleeves. Sniffing back the last of her tears, she turned and headed out into their bedroom.

"Here I am," she said softly, just in time to watch him enter the bedroom.

"I've been calling you forever now, why did you answer me – "

The blonde stopped in his tracks, his gaze finally landing on his wife. He eyed her for a long while, studying the discolored flesh around her eye. It was disgusting to look at. It was so bad that a part of the whites of her eye was tinted red. Had he really hit her that hard? Was he the reason for that shameful bruise?

"Hinata… I," he started out, moving closer to her.

He watched as his wife flinched slightly. He could feel the rage building up within him – he hated whenever she flinched, as if she were afraid of him. The rational part of his mind was telling him that she had every right to be afraid of him – he was after all her attacker.

What should he say to her then? What could he say to her that wouldn't lead to her to say something that would piss him off? He didn't want to hurt her again. He didn't want to feel the guilt he felt now, knotting in his stomach.

"I'll change and get dinner started," she said suddenly.

The husband nodded his head, unable to find something else to say to his wife. He watched as she removed her robe from her body, unabashedly walking around him to the wardrobe to find something more appropriate to wear. His eyes found every last bruise and scar that marred her once perfect skin. Had they all been because of him? Where those all his fault?

"Hinata I –"

"I hope you're in the mood for chicken; I planned on making turkey but I hadn't taken it out of the freezer this morning," she interrupted, turning her body to face him halfway.

The husband felt his throat becoming dry. Her forearms were covered in red bruises the size of fingers, his fingers. Her neck had the same markings; only they were faded with age. Everywhere… they were everywhere. How had he not seen them before?

"Hinata –"

"I could just make meat loaf instead, I know how you like western dishes," she commented, pulling on her panties.

"Hinata –"

"Or even spa–"

"Will you shut up and let me speak?" he said irritably.

The wife shut her mouth and nodded her head, allowing her husband the chance to speak. He was silent however, just staring at her for a while. His steady blue gaze traveled over her body, eyeing every abrasion carefully, remembering each incident as clear as day.

The opal-eyed woman turned her gaze away from him, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Don't hide from me."

Nodding, she let her arms fall. She could feel his eyes burning into her flesh.

"Wh-what is it?" she asked quietly.

He had seen her naked thousands of times but this was the first time he had ever been that interested. The part that made her nervous was the fact that it wasn't sexual interest; he was just staring at her.

"Those bruises…" he started out, moving closer to her.

Hinata fought the urge to close her eyes, even though she badly wanted to disappear. She didn't want him to look anymore, as silly as it sounded.

He touched her gently, his callused fingertips smoothing over the skin of her back, tracing one of the purple bruises. "They're from me aren't they?"

Hinata bit her bottom lip, unsure of how to answer him. If she told the truth he might hit her and if she lied he still might hit her.

"Tell me," he said softly to her, his eyes pleading with hers.

Hinata looked away from him again. She couldn't stand the look he was giving her now. She couldn't trust it, she couldn't believe it. Her husband actually looked regretful, as if realizing a tragic error in his ways.

"Yes… you d-did it."

Naruto was silent for a while, just watching her as she through up that same mental/emotional wall. She was always trying to distance herself from him, always trying to escape. He didn't comment though, just continued to gently rub her back, unknowingly making his wife even more uncomfortable.

"I-I should go and s-start dinner… you must be h-hungry…"

She began pulling away from him but he stopped her, closing his hand around her elbow. "Don't leave."

Hinata nodded her head slowly, her eyes refusing to meet his.

"I need to talk to you."

She gave no response other than another head nod.

"I… love you – you know that. I just… I don't know why I get that way. I see you sometimes and I don't know what I want to do to you, I just want to make you feel the way that I feel, the way I've _been _feeling."

He paused for a moment or two, watching her face carefully. Nothing. She closed herself off from him once again.

"I miss you," he continued. "I miss everything really. Our old life, before any of this – before Akira –"

"Don't talk about him," she said softly. "Don't talk about him. J-just… stop mentioning him. Please."

Naruto stared at his wife, his brows wrinkling.

"What the hell is your problem, Hinata? We can never talk about him. Ever since he – "

"Shut up!" she yelled, turning to face him finally.

Naruto studied her face with wide eyes.

"Just shut… up."

"Are you asking me to forget about him? Pretend he never existed? Is that what you want?"

Hinata placed her hand over her eyes; preventing him from seeing the tears she felt building up in them.

"Huh? Is that it Hinata," he asked her, shaking her a little. "I'm not like you – a bitch – I can't just forget him. He was a living, breathing person, Hinata, not just some puppy you can just forget about."

The wife jerked her arm away from her husband's painful grasp. "I didn't forget," she said to him, her voice low.

"I didn't forget him. How could I forget the one person who ever really loved me? Hm? How could I?" she countered him, her brows furrowing slightly as she glared at the floor.

Naruto watched her. She had a lot of nerve, talking to him like that.

"You know what, Hinata? I'm just about –"

"What? Huh? What?" she yelled at him, turning her nasty glare onto her husband. "Just about what? Sick of me? Well I'm sick of _you_!"

His eyes widened slightly as he watched the angry expression his wife held.

"Everyday you walk around here playing the victim card like someone's doing something to you. No one's doing anything to hurt you but _you_! So you don't get to talk, you don't get to complain. Just shut the hell up!" she screamed at him before storming out of their bedroom, uncaring for the fact that she was clad only in white lace panties.

Naruto stared out the door into the hallway, his brain taking a few moments to process what had just happened. Had she honestly…? That hadn't happened. Did it?

He stalked after her, heading down the stairs to find his wife in the kitchen, going through the fridge as if nothing had happened upstairs. He watched as she pulled out the chicken and all the necessary ingredients to prepare it.

"What are you doing?"

She gave him no answer, just continued on as if he wasn't there. She moved around the kitchen, rubbing seasoning all over the raw meat. Was she really that free with her body? – it was okay for her to simply cook naked? Naruto watched her for a while longer, still waiting for her to respond.

"Are you going to answer me?"

"What do you _think _I'm doing Naruto?" she countered, using a knife to separate the chicken's limbs from its body.

Before any of them comprehended what was happening he was all over her, crushing his lips to hers and forcing her against the wall. She struggled against him but to no avail, he was simply too strong for her. He pressed his body closer to hers, his hands closing around her neck to hold her head in place.

"You listen and you listen good," he started slowly, pulling his lips back from hers. "I was willing to forgive what happened upstairs, but you're not going to continue talking to me like that."

The wife gave no response; she only stared at him, eyes narrowed.

His brows crunched together.

"Fix your face," he demanded, shaking her a bit.

Though she longed to rebel, she did as he said and relaxed her face muscles, or at least tried to.

"Fix. It."

He shook her once more, forcing her against the wall harder. He studied her face for a while. If he were to say his wife wasn't the most sexually attractive woman he had ever met he'd be a damned liar. Something about the back sass she was giving him as turning him on. What was going on with her? Was she having a nervous breakdown?

"Let me go," she demanded.

He frowned at her. Too bad she wasn't getting the message.

He slid his hand from her neck and weaved his fingers in her hair before pulling her from the wall and turning her around so that her front was pressed to it.

"You just don't get it do you? Do you?" he questioned her, pressing her face closer to the wall. "I. Run. This. You don't have any say in anything."

Hinata bit her bottom lip, keeping herself from saying anything she would definitely regret later. It was as if there was a ton of adrenaline following through her, giving her the courage necessary to stand up to her husband, but it wasn't really helping her.

His free hand roamed down her back, his fingers hooking in her panties and guiding them down her legs.

"You're beautiful," he told her, using his hand to spread her legs apart. "I love you."

The wife shut her eyes. She knew what was coming next. He wasn't being fair. He was breaking her all over again. The courage she once felt only a few moments ago disappeared as she heard the menacing sound of his zipper being released.

"Naruto I –"

"Shut up. You are my wife. You do as I say. Always."

Her shoulders began to quake then and tears built behind her closed eyes. It was gone. The power she felt, the nerve she gained. All gone. He robbed her of it. And as he thrust himself inside of her, she felt as if he had robbed her of much more than just that. Her pride. Her dignity. He took them. Why? Because he could. He could do whatever the hell he wanted to. Because she was his wife.

* * *

**If you're anything like me then you're feeling that there wasn't enough Sasuke in this chapter. Ugh. Next chapter I promise. The romance between Hinata and Sasuke will begin soon. I have some good stuff up here *points to forehead* involving their love affair! Hope you stick around to see it (despite my many spelling errors; I haven't gotten around to finding a beta. Think I need one? Offers? Anyone? Anyone? Bah!). Review onegaishimasu!**


	5. Runaway

**_Hello! I'ts a little late, I know, but better late than never, ne? Well, I was thinking yesterday and I decided to make this my Christmas present to you all. Yes, Christmas is almost over and most of you wont read this until tomorrow or Monday, but hey, doesn't mean it's not a kick ass Christmas present! Anyway - Read, Enjoy, Review!_**

**All For Love**

_KawaiixKisses_

Runaway

* * *

In the dark she lay for hours, her opal eyes staring at the walls. It was silent save for the soft hum of her husband's snoring beside her and the occasional sniffling on her account. She had cried silently for a while, – long after he had fallen asleep of course – unable to stop the tears from sliding down her cheeks. It was becoming too much for her to handle, just too much for her to deal with all together. She had hoped Naruto would change, revert back to the old him, the him she fell in love with, now she was beginning to see that that would never happen. Naruto might as well of died because the person she was married to was not 'Naruto'. He was a person she could not recognize but had become used to. He was a stranger, someone she didn't know – someone she didn't _want _to know. She had to escape. That was all she thought as she slid from the bed.

Lifelessly, she walked towards the en suite bathroom and turned on the shower, scrubbing her filthy skin from all traces of her husband. She toweled herself dry, after the hour-long shower, and stepped out into their bedroom where she dressed casually in sweats. She tossed a quick glance at the lock, noting the time, before her eyes slid to her husband. He lay there, his brows knotted slightly as if scowling his sleep. "I hate you." She wasn't sure if the words were spoken aloud or were silent thoughts, but it didn't matter. She hated him. More than anything else in the world. She hated him more than cancer, more than world hunger, more than poverty. "Shit…" she swore under her breath as more tears slid from her eyes. She was so frustrated. If she could, she'd stab him right then. He was vulnerable, so open for her to destroy. She wanted him to feel everything she had felt, she wanted to take everything he had away from him so that he could be left hallow, just as she had been. God she hated this man. She had never hated anyone before, but Naruto had taught her how to. Showed her how to hate another person, how to wish they wouldn't wake up in the morning, or that they'd get into some horrible car accident on the way home from work. How to wish they'd never been born – never even thought of. Hell, sometimes she wished his parents had never met, and then she wouldn't have to stuck there with him.

The wife turned away from her husband, the person she swore before God to spend forever with, for better or for worse. Only, she hadn't known that the 'worse' would have been so horrible. She forced herself to walk away from the man she had once loved, away from the person who had once loved her. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she had to get the hell out of there. The opal eyed woman allowed her feet to carry her out of her house and down the street where she wandered for hours. Her mind was jumbled with thousands of incoherent thoughts.

Vaguely, she noted how dark and cold it was, the night air brushing against her arms and face. She should have brought a jacket, she thought as she rounded a corner slowly. She hadn't been thinking about it earlier and supposed it didn't matter now, what was done was done. She wasn't going back to the house to get one, that was for sure. For now, she'd have to find a warm place to stay for the night, some place safe. Vaguely she thought of all the places she could go, where she would be accepted. There was Sakura or Ino, but she didn't want them to know she and Naruto were having problems. She didn't want them to feel sorry for her. She couldn't go back to the Hyuuga either, they would see her failed marriage as her fault, they'd scorn her, tell her she ought to go back home and apologize to her husband. She wasn't willing to do that at all. She didn't want to make up with Naruto – not anymore. Hinata needed time for herself, she needed to be alone. She wished she could run away to far away place, some place only she knew about – she'd be happy then.

She allowed her feet to continue carrying her down the road. She drew closer to the town, her home being way out in the boonies, as time passed. She must have been out there for an hour or so before her opal eyes caught sight of a convenience store. She hurried into the store, tired of the cold air. She let out a sigh of relief as heat crashed against her skin, instantly warming her up. "Oyasumi*" a voice sounded as she entered. Her eyes darted towards a brightly smiling woman behind the counter, her brown eyes shimmering with glee. Hinata was slightly annoyed with the woman's friendly disposition, but her natural politeness wouldn't allow her to be rude. "Oyasumi…" her voice sounded, cracking slightly as she rubbed her arms, moving around the store. This was good for now, but she couldn't stay there forever, she knew that. She had left all her money behind however – hell she'd even left her car. A sudden wave of hopelessness went through her. Maybe she should go back, it was becoming apparent she couldn't survive without Naruto. She needed him to take care of her. Her job wasn't enough to finance her lavish life-style, the life-style she was accustomed to. Her mind wandered towards the fact that she had an untouched trust fund. 900,000,000 yen* - that was more than enough to support her. But then, the Hyuuga would know if she tapped into it. There was no doubt in her mind that she'd be getting a call from Hiashi if she dared to use it – he'd hound her with questions about Naruto and why she needed to use it. She honestly didn't feel like dealing with that.

Hinata sighed with desperation, moving around the store. She scanned an isle of magazines, her eyes glancing idly at the cover pictures. A bell chimed in the front of the store, alerting the clerks that someone had entered the store yet again. "Oyasumi" the clerk sounded again. Hinata couldn't help herself this time and rolled her eyes, thoroughly annoyed with the woman. Just what the hell was she so happy about? It was damn near three in the morning; no one should be that happy. The disgruntled wife continued moving throughout the store however, walking towards the junk food. She was hungry she noted, staring down at a bag of American Burger Chips**, she had never got around to making that chicken… Images of the night flashed through her mind. She remembered it perfectly, the way he touched her, the harsh grunts he made, everything. It was still fresh in her memory. She reached up to hold herself, her hands closing around her upper arms. She could feel the tears burning the back of her eyes, threatening to betray her out there in public where everyone could see her falling apart. "Uzumaki-san?"

She shut her eyes tightly, ignoring her husband's name. Was he here? God, she hoped he wasn't there. He would be livid. He'd drag her back to their house by her hair and give her the beating of her life. Her chest began rising and falling as the hysteria took over. "No!" she screamed, turning and running from where she stood. "Uzumaki-san!" the voice called once again. Her heart raced wildly, panic filling her at the sound of footsteps following behind her. "No!" she screamed again, knocking over rack, candy falling all over the floor. "Uzumaki! What the hell is wrong with you?" the voice shouted. Hinata of course didn't answer, instead she continued screaming, tossing things down in front of the person she believed to be trying to take her back. "No!" she screamed as two strong arms wrapped around her. Her body jerked frantically, arms and legs thrashing about, trying to escape the steel grip of the man holding her. "Damn it, let me go!" she screamed, fighting her hardest to get away from the man holding onto her, her actions were futile however.

"Uzumaki, calm down. Calm down. No one's trying to hurt you, okay?" the voice said to her, only this time it was gentler; a whisper almost. Hinata continued to thrash about still, not willing to believe what the man was saying to her. "Lemme go! Lemme go!" she screamed louder, "I'm not going back! I'm not going back!" She couldn't help but cry now, hard sobs wracking her body. "Please… please…" she sobbed, "I don't want to g-go back… don't make me go b-back…" she cried softly, thrashing about still. "Shh… shh… nobody's going to make you go anywhere. You're okay. You're okay," the man said to her, patting her head gently, allowing her to relax. It wasn't until she stopped thrashing about that he set her down on her own two feet. She was still for a moment or two, her body shaking before she had the courage to turn around and face the person in behind her. Well, that was what she had planned to do before her brain decided it had gone through enough and the world went dark.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke sat quietly in his living room, a stack of papers set out on his coffee table. He needed to finish all of it before work the following day some how. He had grown bored of his work and had decided to take a walk, relax his mind for a while before returning to his work. Never had he ever thought that he would have stumbled upon what he had when he walked into the convenience store. The sight of her there had worried him for some reason, she looked broken – more broken than usual – , like world had fallen around her. She looked so hopeless, like all she really needed was a hug, someone to comfort her and tell her everything was going to be okay. He had approached her, surprisingly, with the intent to see if she was indeed all right. Turns out she was anything but. She had had a complete melt down at the mention of her name, screaming and knocking over everything. The clerk at the convenience store wanted to have arrested, the woman was ready to call the police and would have if Sasuke hadn't paid her not to.

After being exploited into giving the woman a ridiculously large amount of money, the male had brought his assistant back to his apartment. He had been careful in laying her down in the bed, not wanting to wake her. She would have had a nasty fall had he not caught her in time. Something bad was going on with Uzumaki, that much was for sure. He had an idea of what was going on, but it would be better to hear it from her mouth and not for him to assume. But, judging from the bruises he had saw and the way her husband had acted a few weeks ago, Sasuke was certain he was beating her. Tonight only reaffirmed it. She was out there in the cold, dressed in thin clothing and without a coat, she obviously hadn't been thinking before she left and the way she had been looking at those American Burger Chips, she hadn't eaten either. Sasuke wasn't sure what he should do next. He had her here, passed out in his bed, and she obviously didn't want to go home and he wasn't going to send her out there in the cold either. The male let out a tired sigh, his eyes glancing towards the clock – 7:30am. He should be on his way to work now. He couldn't leave her though, not like that.

Just as the thought had crossed his mind, the door to his bedroom opened slowly to reveal a very sleepy and very tired Hinata. Her eyes were puffy as if she had been crying in her sleep – she probably did. She stared at him for a moment or so, blinking past the fog in her mind until she could see properly. "Uchiha-san…" she said softly, obviously confused by the tone in her voice. Sasuke turned his attention to her, studying the jumbled mass of black hair that curled and tangled around her head. She looked cute – yet horrible at the same time. Her voice was also hoarse, possibly from the screaming. "Wh-where am I?" she asked softly, her eyes skating around nervously. "My apartment," he answered her. The male watched with sadistic fascination as her eyes widened in fear. "You fainted," he told her calmly as she clung to the door jam to his bedroom. She stared at him for a while before nodding her head slowly, probably remembering what had happened before. "I'm… I'm… sorry," she said quietly to him, ashamed by her behavior, heat flooding her cheeks. Sasuke nodded his head. Ordinarily, one would say 'its okay', but Sasuke wasn't much of liar. What she had done was anything but okay – she had a melt down in a convenience store at three in the morning then pasted out in the arms of someone she thought to be a stranger.

They were silent for while, staring at each other. Sasuke was the first to speak. "Sit, we need to talk," he said to her, careful not use her name – he didn't want to spark another outburst like before. The dark haired woman nodded her head and slowly made her way over towards him to sit on the couch. "About earlier," he started but she cut him off. "C-can we… forget that happened." Sasuke frowned, his brows creasing and his lips pouting slightly. "No we can't forget it, Uzumaki," he started, using her name on purpose and getting the desired affect, for her eyes opened wider. "You destroyed a store – knocked over everything. I had to pay a woman 50,000 yen for the clerk not to call the police on you. I deserve a few answers." Hinata closed her eyes; trying to fight the tears she felt building up inside her. She was ashamed, mortified at the idea of someone seeing her so weak – seeing her like that. She hadn't been thinking clearly, she was paranoid, guilty. "I… ran away," she said softly after what had seemed like an eternity. Sasuke had wondered if she had even heard the question and if so, did she plan on answering it. The male nodded his head, already knowing what or whom she had run away from and why, even still, he waited for her to continue.

"Naruto… he… he beats… me." The words were spoken so softly, so quietly, they were barely a whisper. She couldn't keep the tears from sliding down her cheeks, the shame was too much for her bare. Before she knew it she was shaking and sobbing, softly. "A-almost every d-d-day…" she said, choking back another sob. Sasuke looked at her uncertainly – what should he do in a time like this? What should he say? He wanted to comfort her, pull her close and tell her everything would be okay but he got the feeling his touch would not be welcome. By the way she hugged herself and rocked back and forth slowly Sasuke knew it was best if didn't touch her. "How long?" he asked her, his voice soft and controlled. She looked up at him, eyes searching his for something. "Wh-what?"

"How long has he been beating you for?" he restated the question. Hinata nibbled her bottom lip gently, searching her mind for an answer. "Y-years…" she said softly. The male nodded his head and sat back in the couch. His dark eyes studied the walls of his apartment as he began to think. What was he going to do with her? He couldn't just bring her back there, not to where she was being abused so badly. "Is there any place you can go? Family? A friend?" he asked her, turning to look at her once more. Her gaze lowered and she shook her head slowly. Sasuke nodded his head yet again. If that was the case then where was she planning on going? Obviously not back home for she begged and pleaded with him not to make her go back there. "I-I should g-get going now…" she said nervously after some time had passed between the two. The wife stood to her feet, set on walking towards the door before his voice sounded. "To where?" he questioned. She stared at him for a moment or so, thinking over the question in her mind. Where would she go? Not home. Naruto had probably wakened up already and was livid upon waking up and not seeing her there. "I don't know," she answered him.

Sasuke closed his eyes, letting out an exasperated sigh. Somehow he knew this was going to happen. He had pretty much figured it out himself. He didn't need her to tell him for the future was so plain to see now. "Stay here," he said to her. Hinata stared at him for a while, trying to figure out what he was saying to her. "What?" she asked him. Sasuke let out another annoyed sigh, rubbing his eyebrows with his thumb and index finger. "Stay here. You take the bed and I'll take the couch. Hell, I'll even drive you to work," he said to her. Hinata began shaking her head and waving her hands about, rejecting the idea. "I c-can't impose o-on Uchiha-san l-like that…" she said to him. Sasuke frowned again. "It's not imposing if I tell you to stay here. Besides, where are you going to go? You don't have pockets or a purse so I know you don't have any money on you," he countered, staring her square in the eye. Hinata felt her cheeks heat up again. It was true, she didn't have any money, but that didn't mean it was okay for her to just move in with him. "Uchiha-san I – " she tried but he interrupted her. "You're staying here, Uzumaki. I don't want to hear anything else about it."

That was the end of their conversation before he stood up and walked towards his bathroom to shower, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

**

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**

_*** a little over 10,000,000 U.S. dollars**_

_**** Japanese chips that supposedly taste like American cheese burgers lol**_

_Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed that chapter. It's a bit short, only two scenes, but I think it was good nonetheless. Tell me what you think of the format, I felt a bit uncomfortable, but I think it looks better that way, less unnecessary spaces. Other than that, leave me a review, onegaishimasu! :D _


	6. Friends

**_Friends, Romans, Countrymen! Lend me your ears! LOL that is how it starts right? Don't mind me, I just recently remembered how much I love "Julius Cesar" and well I was thinking about when I did the famous Mark Antony monologue. But anyway, without further adieu, I present to you all, AFL: The Sixth Chapter. _**_Note: No chickens were harmed in the making to this chapter. _

**All For Love**

_KawaiixKisses_

Friend

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For days she hid in a stranger's home, too afraid of her husband to return to her own house. Naruto would kill her – quite literally – if she came back. She could see him now; eyes bloodshot and angry, lips curled back, eyebrows crunched together. Oh yeah, he'd be pissed. A pissed off Naruto was not someone she wanted to be around. So here she hid, unable to bring herself to leave Sasuke's apartment. He had been understanding and helpful even, he allowed her to stay in his home for as long as she needed to and also suggested she not go to work for a while lest Naruto showed up there. The thought had never crossed her mind really, though it should have, she planned on going into work the next day. Sasuke however, not only pointed out that Naruto could show up at any time, but also that she didn't have any clothes to wear. There were so many things Hinata hadn't even considered before running away; she just knew that she had to escape him somehow.

Sasuke had been ridiculously kind to her; it was something she was unused to. After the first night of her being there, he had gone out and bought her some things to wear, mentioning that for her to stay in the same thing all the time would be troublesome. The things he had picked had surprised Hinata. He had obviously been paying attention to her for he selected things she would have chosen for herself. Hinata had kindly thanked him before cleaning up and changing into the clean clothes he provided for her. Part of her, the Hyuuga in her, was ashamed at needing him to take care of her. It seemed to her that she was never able to take care of herself – always needed someone to look out for her. Why couldn't she be strong like Ino and Sakura? Why did she always need someone to hold her hand with everything? Just for once she wouldn't have minded being able to do something for herself – just one time be able to say 'I did it'. Just once. The dark haired woman let out a deep sigh as the door opened.

Uchiha Sasuke sauntered into his home, placing his brief case down on the floor as he shut the door behind him. From the instant he walked in he knew she was there. His once painfully bland apartment smelled like her now – not that he minded really. It was a pleasant smell, something he couldn't quite name but didn't hate and that was saying something. His shoulders relaxed a bit as he moved further into his home, pulling his jacket off his shoulders and setting it on the back of a chair.

"You're here," came a soft voice from the corner. The Uchiha turned his gaze to her, studying what she wore that day. The fair lady donned a pair of form fitting jeans and a white top, her shoulders covered by a soft yellow cardigan. Sasuke briefly acknowledged his fashion prowess, noting that what he had picked for her looked good. "Hn," he said at last, his gaze shifting back to her eyes. She looked sad, sadder than she usually did for some reason. Sasuke supposed it was reality settling in on her. He had no doubt in his mind that what she was going through was difficult for her to endure. She had pretty much left everything she had known to hide out in her boss's apartment. He wondered vaguely if she had even left the apartment since the night he found her. Probably not; her skin looked as if it hadn't seen sunlight in a while – not that she had much color to begin with. "Welcome home," she said to him, offering him a small, pleasant smile despite the sadness he had noticed there not too long ago. Sasuke nodded his head in her direction. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was starting to like having her tell him 'welcome home' each night. It was refreshing really. Those two simple words were enough for him to feel slightly relaxed after spending all day confined to four walls.

"I made dinner if you're hungry," she said to him, walking by him and into the kitchen. The small woman removed the covers from a few pots on the stove, the delicious fumes hitting him hard. Everyday when he got home he was tempted to tell her no, that he wasn't hungry but it was hard to lie when the food she made smelled that delicious. It was amazing to him that she able to cook such things using the little bit of food he stocked his kitchen with. Had it not been for her, he would have wasted tens of thousands of yen on take out in the past few days. It was almost a godsend having her there. She cooked him three meals a day, kept his place clean and said very little. It was perfect. He acknowledged that part of him would miss her when she finally did move out. "Yakisoba," she said to him as he walked into the kitchen. "There wasn't much but…"

Sasuke nodded his head and reached for a plate out of the cabinet, but she stopped him. "Let me…" she said quietly, reaching past him for the plate before he could. Sasuke stared down at her. That was probably the only thing that bothered him. She never let him do things for himself. She was always coddling him, trying to take care of him. It was almost motherly. It didn't bother him a lot, it was only slightly annoying. He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the counter, watching as she filled his plate with the noodles. His dark eyes studied her troubled expression, watching as her brows crunched slightly together as she fished around in the draws for a pair of chopsticks. "What's on your mind?" he inquired after a while, walking behind her as she carried the plate into the dinning room, setting it down on the table. "Nothing," she answered him, turning her a pleasant smile onto him. He cocked a brow at her, not believing her for even a minute. Even so, he still sat down at the table and began to eat and she soon joined him.

He couldn't help watching her over his plate, studying the expressions she made. She was a terrible liar it seemed; anyone looking at her would know that something was up. "Tell me," he said at last, earning himself a strange look from her. He waited a while though for her to speak. The woman tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, turning her gaze down to her plate. "I just…" she started off, her voice soft. "I feel weird." Sasuke stared at her, his brows knotting in question. Look up at him, she noticed the question on his face and took that as a signal to go on. "I feel as if I-I'm…intruding." Oh, so that was it. Sasuke could understand why she would feel that way. "I-I mean… I must be in the w-way… There are th-things you want to d-do, but can't since I'm h-here." That he could understand too. Honestly he wouldn't be doing much if she weren't there. Other than work from time to time, he did very little. Occasionally, he did receive the unwanted visit from his brother and from his 'friend' Suigetsu. "Don't worry about that sort of thing," he said after a while. "I told you to stay here, its not as if you asked me." To him, it seemed like she hadn't thought of it that way for her eyes widened slightly at him. "You're okay," he said to her, biting into his food at last.

Hinata stared at her boss, a million and one different thoughts swirling around in her head. She had never viewed it from that angle. In her mind, she was a burden on him, something unwanted and in the way. She never once considered her living situation being one proposed by him. She had gotten used to things being her fault, over everything that went wrong being a direct result of something she may or may not have done. The fair skinned woman nodded her head slowly and began to eat, her shoulders relaxing slightly. The two finished their meal in silence.

* * *

The house was a wreck, a complete and total wreck. Dust littered the furniture and pets had yet to be feed. Where in the fuck was his wife? Naruto let out an irritated breath as he walked around his empty mansion. He swore over and over again that when his wife finally did remember where she lived, he was going to kill her. He would end her life the moment she walked through the door. How dare she just leave him like that? Walk right on out during the middle of the night. What in the hell was she thinking? If she thought that even for a second that she would just leave him like that without a word, she was out of her mind. That little bitch owed him. The blonde male fumed silently as he went down the stares and into the kitchen.

Lucky for her he knew how to take care of himself. Had he been unable to cook, he really would kill her for starving him. The male took out a few spices from the cabinets, readying himself to prepare his dinner. "A week… A whole fucking week," he grumbled under his breath, tearing the chicken from the package it came in. What woman disappeared from their house for an entire week? Had she lost her mind? At first, he thought someone had kidnapped her for ransom, but when he received no call or letter from the kidnapper, he knew she had ran away. "She had better get her ass back here…" he grumbled, seasoning the chicken after having had washed it off. Where could she have gone though? She wouldn't have gone home and she wouldn't have gone to her friends' house. Naruto knew his wife perfectly; he knew her mannerisms and the way she thought down to a T. Yet some how, he couldn't figure her out on this one.

He had paid a visit to her job a few days ago, hoping to catch her and drag her back home. Only, when he got there they told him Hinata hadn't come in since the night she ran away. The male pondered this as he began chopping off the limbs attached to the chicken. "Fuck it," he swore, tossing the knife to the side. He wasn't just going to sit around and wait for her to come back, he'd find her. There was no way he was going to let her do this to him. Once the word got out that the wife of one of the candidate for Prime Minister was missing, the whole country would be up in arms searching for her. Oh yes, she'd be coming back, quite soon actually.

Naruto pushed himself away from the counter and headed up to his home office. There were a few calls he had to make in order to have his wife returned to him.

* * *

It was his idea for them to go out that day. He said her staying in the apartment all day would do nothing for her sanity – he said something about cabin fever, Hinata had not been listening fully. She found herself in a book store, following her boss around like a lost puppy. She hadn't admitted it to herself – not fully anyway – but she was afraid of being alone. What if someone recognized her out there? She'd give anything not to have to go back to Naruto. Just thinking about the blonde and his cold blue eyes made her uneasy. At times, the thought of being captured made it hard for her to breathe and she found herself struggling for air. It was frightening, deathly frightening. If or when Naruto found her, things would not be looking pretty for her.

"Uchiha-san…" she whispered quietly, earning a curious look from him. The two had been in the bookstore for all of an hour and he had yet to make a selection. The male looked down at the fair lady, cocking his brow at her as if to question her reasons for calling him. Hinata turned her gaze away, unable to look him in the eye for whatever reason–lately she had been feeling nervous around him; then again she was never good with members of the opposite sex.

"What are we…doing here?" she questioned softly, her transparent gaze focusing on her feet. The raven-haired male stared down at her for a moment or two before turning his attention back to the book he had in his hand. "Shopping," he answered simply, reading the back of the novel.

Her brows crunched together slightly before relaxing back to their regular position. She knew they were shopping – she wasn't an idiot – she just didn't know _why _they were shopping. Naruto was pretty well known, while she wasn't as known as he was, someone might recognize her face. It was a long shot, but it could still happen. And the fact that it _still could happen_, made her nervous and a little paranoid. She found herself looking carefully over her shoulder, closing her eyes in anticipation if she felt someone brush past her. It was too scary being out in the open. She'd rather stay back in his apartment, cleaning the bathroom than being out book shopping at the moment.

Sasuke, sensing the uneasy tension rolling off of her looked down to her once more. He studied the worried expression on her face for a moment or two, already knowing what was bothering her. "You can't stay locked up in the apartment forever," he mentioned, placing the book back on the shelf and moving on.

Hinata looked up to find his back retreating from her and she quickly followed, afraid of being alone out there. "But… Naruto –"

"Doesn't know where you are," he cut in, turning the corner and entering the mystery section. That's true, he didn't know, but that didn't mean he couldn't find out. Naruto wasn't the type to sit around and wait for things, if he wanted something – like he wanted her – he went and got it. Which only meant it would be a matter of time before he stalked her down and dragged her back to their cold, lifeless dungeon of a home. "You don't know Naruto like I do he… he's… crazy," she said, whispering the last part.

To her dismay and utter shock, the male cracked a lopsided grin. How could he find amusement in any of this? This was her life they were speaking about, her very well being. If she were to be captured she was pretty sure she'd never see the light of day again. Naruto would probably lock her up in the house and force her to breed his children – which was something she no longer wanted to do. The thought actually had her thinking of the child she had taken away from her. Subconsciously, her hand rubbed her lower side of her tummy, missing the child that was once there. "It's not funny," she said quietly, her voice suddenly sad.

Sasuke tossed her a glance, only to have his eyes widen slightly at the sight of her rubbing her stomach. His gaze moved from her stomach and hand to her face, noting the expression there. She looked lonely all of a sudden, as if something was missing. "Are you alright?" he asked her, stopping and turning so his body faced her completely. She nodded her head slowly, her white eyes looking up at him with that same sadness. For whatever reason, the way she looked at him then made him feel…strange. As if somehow it was his fault – no, as if he wanted to make it better. He didn't know how, but he _wanted _to make it better. He wanted to tell her everything would be okay and _mean _it. Something about her just made him want to protect her. To him, someone like her didn't deserve to be hurt, or sad, or lonely. She was like a glass doll, pretty and nice to look at, yet easy to shatter.

"I'm sorry," he found himself saying to her. It was weird. She was _weird_. He should be finding reasons not to like her, not want her around. Searching for some reason to be uncomfortable with her in his apartment, but he couldn't. He couldn't dislike her. At times it was frustrating really.

"Its okay…" he heard her say quietly, turning her gaze down. Well… he _did _hate when she did that. Every once in a while she did or say things that proved just how insecure she really was. He supposed that had something to do with her husband. He had only met the man once, but could tell he was a nightmare. Just the way he looked at Hinata made him uneasy. It was a sick possessive stare, not the kind of possessiveness that comes from love, the kind that comes from obsession. It was animal-like. Scary.

"Hn. Lets go, I'm hungry," he said, looking away from her and heading off towards the door. He could hear her small feet walking behind him, following him dutifully. He was only slightly annoyed by that, but didn't mention it. "Do you want me to make you something to eat?" she asked him as they walked through the parking lot. Sasuke stopped moving and spun around to face her. He stared down at her for a long while, watching as her eyes drifted away from his.

"Look at me," he said to her, his voice calm and even. She nodded her head and looked up at him, forcing herself to keep from turning away. He made her nervous – not like how Naruto did though, it was a different kind of nervousness. A nervousness she didn't want to dissect at the moment. She felt that it was much better if she was unaware of her feelings when it came to the man before her. She couldn't get hurt too badly if she remained detached, nonchalant in regards to him.

"Uchiha-san…" she questioned softly. For the past few awkward moments, he had only stared down at her, studying her with knotted brows. She watched as his face leaned closer to hers, his eyes focused on her lips. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized what was happening here. Her brain scattered, searching for something to say, something to feel. It wasn't that she _didn't _want him to kiss her, it was mostly…mostly… She couldn't find the words for it. All she knew was that him kissing her wouldn't lean to anything good. She needed to remain detached, no matter how impossible it seemed. She turned her gaze down, tilting her head down in the process and succeeding in blocking whatever attempt he might have been trying to make at kissing her.

The male stopped moving, finding himself once more. What had he been thinking? He had been meaning to tell her to relax, that she didn't have to work so hard to please him, but when he looked at her, all he could think of was her lips. He found himself wondering how they would feel – because they looked extremely soft – and it perplexed him. Why should he care if they were soft or not? It wasn't making any sense to him, but his body didn't seem to care for it began moving on it's own according. What the hell was that about? He barely knew her… not that it mattered really because he did more than just kissing with women who's last names were mysteries to him. With Hinata however, it was different. She deserved better than random, meaningless sex. She deserved better than being felt up on by some horny guy who couldn't control himself. As mushy and ridiculously feminine as it sounded to him, she deserved someone who cared about her. It damn sure wasn't her husband and he didn't think it was him either. It would be best if he left her alone.

"Forget about calling me –san anymore," he said at last. The female looked up at him finally when he turned away from her, studying the back of his head as he began walking towards the car once more. She hurriedly walked after him, trying to catch up. "Eh?" she asked when she was in hearing distance from him. "Don't call me, Uchiha-san, anymore," he expanded.

Hinata stopped, but only for a moment, to stare at him. "Then what sh-should I call you then…?" she asked him, curious as to what his answer would be.

"Sasuke."

"Sasuke?" she echoed, his name sounding foreign to her. "You can add –kun if it makes you feel any better," he said to her, pulling his keys out of his pocket and opening the car for them both when they finally reached it. "But… you're my boss… I c-can't…"

"You don't work for me anymore," he said to her as the two of them climbed into the car. She stared at him, her brows knotting together slightly. What on earth was he trying to say to her? Hinata never thought herself to be stupid, but none of what he was saying was making any kind of sense to her. "Uchiha-san…"

"Sasuke-kun," he corrected her as he slid the key into the ignition, turning the car on. "From now on we are friends."

"Friends?" she echoed, as if she had never heard of the word. He nodded as he pulled out of the lot and began to drive towards his apartment. "Hn."

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**I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I liked writing it. I wanted to have it up by friday (January 14th, 2011) but I kept getting distracted, but today is good, ne? (January 15th, 2011). Anywhoooooooooo, Review pretty please **


	7. Abandoned

_Hi everyone! Did you miss me? Of course you did! Lol. Well, it's been far too long before I updated this story. To be honest, idk what I was doing really. I was all over the place. It's April 10th, 2011 and my senior year in high school is basically over. All of May is "Senior Month" so I won't be doing anything too profound so I'm hoping to update EVERY LAST ONE OF MY STORIES. That's a promise I'm officially making to all of my readers/fans. Hahahaha. Let's hope I stick to it, ne? Anyway, on to the story, I do hope you enjoy it and since I have no life, I'm hoping to have the next one up sometime this week. =D_

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KawaiixKisses

**All For Love**

_Abandoned_

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Things had been running smoothly since Hinata had moved in. Every morning he would make to the smell of breakfast being made in his kitchen and every night he would return home with dinner already prepared for him. He wasn't sure how she did it, but she had somehow wiggled herself into his heart. He had told himself that his feelings for her were only friendly, but the slight fluttering in his chest whenever she smiled at him told him otherwise.

As time wore on, he had grown accustomed to her presence. He looked forward to coming home knowing that she would be there, waiting for him with a warm plate and a pretty smile. He found himself wanting to do things for her, working his ass off to get a smile from her – it was all he lived for nowadays. Whenever she spoke of finding a place of her own to live it, it pained him. He didn't _want _her to leave – he liked her living with him. Sometimes he felt that he was being selfish, keeping her locked up in his apartment would make him no better than her husband.

Naruto. The man had often crossed Sasuke's mind. He knew it would be only a matter of time before he would come looking for his wife, or before someone spotted her. This was what was running through Sasuke's mind before he flicked on the television one night.

"Uzumaki Naruto…" the raven-haired male said under his breath, staring out at the TV screen. The worst that could happen finally happened. He had known he had seen her husband before, it made sense now. He was the democratic nominee for Prime Minister. They were in a lot of trouble then.

"Sasuke-kun…" he heard her voice struggling from some part of the apartment. It wasn't long before her small frame came swinging around the corner, a small smile plastered to her lips. "What would you like to eat?"

The male swallowed past the lump that had lodged itself in his throat, shutting the TV off and standing up. He almost suggested they go out to eat when he remembered what he had just seen. There was no way now that he could take her out in the daytime. They'd more than likely be caught. It had taken him a week to do it, but her husband had filed a missing person's report on his wife. The whole country now knew what her face looked like. He knew politicians were shady, but he had never experienced it like this before.

"Anything you make should be fine," he said after a while, his eyes trained on her.

The Hyuuga recognized that look – it was the very same one she used to receive when she was younger. He pitied her. But why? For what? If it was because of Naruto he was a bit late with that emotion. By now the circumstances should have set in, why did he now just understand it? It couldn't have been that.

"Is… something wrong?" she asked him quietly, her feet taking her a few steps closer to him.

Sasuke cleared his throat, turning his gaze down from her. It would do her no good if he began pitying her. If anything, it would only make things worse for her. If he was truly going to be a _friend _to her then he'd need to help her through this as best as he could. How he was going to do it was beyond him. But at any rate, she needed to know the position her husband had but them both in. "Hinata," he started slowly, earning himself a questioning look from the fair lady.

"You can't stay here anymore," he said awkwardly to her, his brows knotting together slightly.

Hinata continued to stare at him for a moment or two before nodding her head in understanding. She left her place by the wall and walked to his bedroom in order to fetch her things. "Wait," he called to her. "I'm not finished yet."

Hinata paused, her back facing him. She wasn't willing to face him fully, not when her eyes were swelling with tears. She bit her bottom lip gently, her pale hues focusing down at her feet.

"I'm not kicking you out," he started slowly, trying to find the right words. "We need to get you to a much safer place, the _last _place you're husband will think to find you."

She dried her eyes, sniffling back a few tears, before turning around to face him. "What do you mean?" she asked quietly.

"All of Japan knows you're missing," he answered. "Uzumaki held a press conference this morning, telling the country about your absence, even going as far as putting out a reward."

Hinata frowned, her brows creasing slightly. She should have known Naruto wasn't going to let this go. He would never let her just leave. She was chained to him forever it seemed. The last couple of days had been relaxing and she had allowed herself to breath easily – an obvious mistake on her part.

"Wh-what should I do?" she asked him, fiddling with her fingers.

Naruto wouldn't go away, he wouldn't leave her alone. She could feel her heart drumming wildly in her chest as thoughts of her husband swarmed her mind. Her pale eyes filled with tears but she pushed them back, not quite willing to allow herself to cry in front of Sasuke.

"I'm not sure," he answered honestly, sitting down on the sofa.

Hinata watched as he ran a hand through his hair, his features grim as he began to think. It was obvious to her that her presence was straining on him. He didn't owe her anything; he didn't _have _to look out for her. Hinata wasn't even sure why he had volunteered to help her out. Naruto was such a bastard that if he knew Sasuke was helping her he'd probably have him arrested, say he kidnapped his wife, or something like that. It was a very 'Naruto' way of doing things. The frail woman looked down at her shoes.

Sasuke, looking up from his coffee table, turned his onyx gaze onto her.

"Don't worry, I'll figure something out," he told her, gently, standing up and moving towards her.

God, what was wrong with her? Why did she always need someone to take care of her? She was a grown woman, quite capable of looking out for herself – at least she should be. All her life, she was always relying on someone to take care of things for her. She figured it was why she was in the situation she was in now. If only she wasn't so useless, so utterly worthless, she could take care of herself. Maybe then she'd have the strength to ask for a divorce. Goodness, why _hadn't _she asked for one? It was possibly all the blows to the head that had clouded her thoughts. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, barely noticing Sasuke until he was there, circling her in his arms.

He had touched her before, but never like this. It was usually accidental brushing of fingers or limbs, stepping on her feet or almost stumbling over here. This time was different. This time he was touching her _on purpose_. Her heart pounded in her chest, drumming madly against her ribcage. The small woman could feel heat bubbling under her skin as he pulled her close to his chest.

"You'll be safe," he told her softly, patting her head.

Nervously, she nodded her head, trying not to notice how hard his body was in comparison to her much smaller and softer frame. His hands lingered, holding her close to him still. For weeks, he had wanted to do this. Nothing had seemed more appealing than holding her, feeling her pressed against him so perfectly. He ran his fingers through her hair, allowing himself a few more moments of peace before putting some distance between them at last.

Hinata looked up at him, her face red and her eyes nervous. He stared down at her for a moment or so, the temptation to pull her to him again and close his lips around hers was strong, but he pushed it away – there were more important things to worry about; he could worry about her lips later. Finally, he pulled away from her completely; offering her what he hoped was a pleasant smile.

"I promise."

Hinata nodded her head, butterflies still bubbling in the pit of her stomach. Vaguely, she remembered when Naruto used to give her that feeling. He wasn't always so awful, she kept telling herself that. The fact that he was more than awful now out weighed their past however. She wished things had turned out differently for them; truly, she had loved him at one point. That love however had died and been reborn as something else less pleasant. Every punch to the face, kick to the side, only aided in her hate for her husband.

Despite her troubling thoughts, she gave this man a smile, a smile that had him wanting to hold her close again. He knew better though and walked into his kitchen, ready to see what she had left over in the fridge.

Hinata watched as he walked away, part of her longing for the closeness he offered and the other part knowing it was safer if they kept their distance. From the beginning, she had some sort of attraction to him and even now she was unable to explain what caused it. All she knew was that whenever she saw him her heart did something strange and she found herself stuttering more around him than she did in her entire life. She wasn't sure what she should do with her feelings, but she knew having them would do her – or him – any good.

**_KawaiixKisses_**

She waited until he was asleep before she decided to leave. She had packed her clothes neatly into a duffle bag she had found in the coat closet out by the front door, feeling a little bad for stealing it. Most of her bad feelings were coming from the fact that she was leaving in the first place. She knew it was good manners to tell Sasuke that she was leaving instead of sneaking off in the middle of the night, but if he knew he'd stop her no doubt. Also, she felt bad about leaving Sasuke in general. She would miss him. It was only then that allowed herself to admit the feelings she was harboring for the dark haired male. He was such a contrast to Naruto, present and past. He was aloof and indifferent, but not heartless. He was kind and gentle with her, always making sure that she was comfortable and okay, in his own 'Sasuke way'. She liked him. A lot.

She could feel tears burning the back of her eyes as she began thinking of being without him. It hadn't been that long since she lived with the Uchiha, about a month and a half, but she felt more safe and more comfortable with him in that time than she had in the past three years with anyone else. Sniffing back her tears, she slinked the duffle bag over her shoulder and headed out the front door, shutting it softly behind her.

The battered woman brought herself down to the train station and purchased a ticket with a little money she had. Her long dark hair was let down in order to hide her face lest anyone recognize her – she could pull it up once she reached her destination, the country side. No one would recognize her there. People seldom paid attention to politics there so she figured it to be a safe hiding spot. She only hoped the 400,000 yen she brought with her would last until she could find a place to stay and a job. She was good with cooking and cleaning, she hoped she could find a live in job some where. She pushed her thoughts a side however, she could worry about the detail later, all that matter now was getting out of the city and further away from Naruto.

"Papa, papa, I'm hungry," a tiny voice complained, earning Hinata's attention.

He was a small little thing, no bigger than four feet and possibly around that age as well. He had large, brown eyes and messy black hair with a fat face. His lips were red and pouty as he stared up at his father with an annoyed expression. The child continued to tug on his father's sleeve until the man looked down at him. "I promise you can eat as soon as we get on the train, Takumi-kun," the father assured him.

_Takumi. _

Hinata stared at the little boy, her eyes watching him carefully. He reminded her so much of Akira, her beautiful Akira. Her heart began hammering in her chest as memories of her son filled her mind.

_"Mom-mee," the small child said softly, trying the words out for the first time._

_Hinata stared down at her baby, smiling happily at his attempt to say her name. He was so chubby and cute with his fat cheeks, arms and legs. He had a lot of hair too, thick and golden like his father's and pure white eyes that matched her own. He was unusual looking, but in a good way - it was almost god-like, like some sort of hybrid cross from human and god. Hinata grinned at her thoughts, she supposed all parents thought their children were higher entities of some sort. She patted his head._

_"That's it Akira-kun. Mommy."_

_The child smiled and giggles wildly, laughter bubbling out of his small chest. "Mom-mee!"_

_Hinata couldn't help but smile at him more. She loved her child so much, more than anything. She never knew a love like this was even possible. The best part was this small, amazing little boy was half her and half the man she had promised God she would spend the rest of her life with and gladly so. Naruto Uzumaki._

_"Say Daddy, Akira," a deep voice encouraged from behind her._

_She watched as her son's eyes widened and a bright smile broke across his face as he looked past her. She turned her head and smiled at her husband, receiving in return the same loving smile. _

_"Daddy's home Akira. Can you say Daddy?" she asked the baby, turning to look at him again._

_The chubby baby smiled at it's mother before furrowing its brows and trying out the new word. "Da... Da..." the baby struggled out, frowning in it's attempt. "Dad-Deeee."_

_Both Hinata and Naruto clapped their hands, praising their child for a job well done._

_"Good job, Akira," Naruto said, kneeling down by the bed next to his wife and staring up at Akira who sat on the edge._

Hinata shook her head, forcing herself to stop thinking about the two of them. It would do her no good. She couldn't go on like this, remembering such things. She loved Akira with all of her heart and when he died, she wanted to die too. She wanted to be where he was, she wanted to be with her baby in heaven. Earth was too painful, it was too hard to live without him. She only knew him for a short time, but he was everything to her, she felt like her whole life she spent it waiting on him to complete it. Ever since Akira died she felt empty. Naruto had been no help.

Hinata dried her tears with the back of her hand and stood up from her spot on the bench when the train finally pulled up. She did her best to ignore the father and son as she walked onto the train, vaguely wondering what a small child was doing out so late, but deciding to ignore it. She sat down in a comfortable, cushioned chair by the window, placing her bag in the seat next to her so that no one would attempt to sit beside her. She need not worry about that however, she should have been worried about who would sit in front of her because no sooner than she placed the bag down did the father and son take the two seats in front of her.

She swallowed past the lump that had lodged itself in her throat as she noticed Takumi's profile through the space between the two seats. He looked up at his father and complained again about his hunger, smiling when his father handed him a zip lock bag containing a small sandwich with the crust sliced off. This would be a long six hours.

**_KawaiixKisses_**

Sasuke woke up that morning and knew automatically that something was wrong. He forced himself out of his bed and headed towards her room, pushing the door open and peering into the empty bedroom. She was gone. He stormed into her bedroom, looking all around for any signs that she had been forcibly removed, it was silly he knew it. He would have heard it if someone had kidnapped her, but he needed to check anyway. Her bed was made the same way she made it every morning before getting up which told him she left calmly. He went over to her closet and opened it, finding it mostly filled, a few items of clothing missing, the same for her drawers, except for the underwear which she had taken all of. She had left him. Abandoned him.

_Abandoned._

Why had he felt abandoned? He hadn't known her long, a little over a month. She hadn't abandoned him, she simply left. Yes, she left, she didn't abandon him. But wasn't it the same thing? Wasn't leaving someone behind and abandoning them the same thing? It was the same thing. Only... it implied something. It implied that they were more than they really were. They weren't. He was her boss and he was simply helping her to get out of a bad situation. She had decided she didn't want his help anymore and left...in the middle of the night...without saying goodbye. That was all. That was all there was to it. But why did he feel like there was more? Hinata was not his. She did not belong to him, but to another. However, she didn't _want _to belong to that person. So then he -

Sasuke shook his head, pushing his thoughts away. It didn't matter. She was gone which meant he had less to worry about. She was a burden on him anyway. She probably realized this and left. She was always so polite, worrying about other people more than she did herself. It made sense, that's what happened.

Sasuke allowed himself to leave her bedroom, no, his guest room. His feet carried him out to the kitchen in order to look for breakfast, the gnawing in his stomach was telling him it was time to eat. Hinata used to have breakfast ready for him by the time he woke up. He would come out and find her standing over the table, placing a glass down and filling it with orange juice or a mug with black coffee. She'd smile at him and greet him pleasantly, never failing in making him eternally grateful for having her around.

The male pushed his thoughts away and open up his refrigerator to find dozens of tub-a-wear stacked up on the shelves inside. He pulled them out and expected them one by one, each containing some sort of food. She had cooked him breakfast, lunch and dinner for the next month it seemed. All the containers carried a sticky note with reheating instructions and what time of day he should eat them. The male couldn't help but crack a grin.

"You impossibly confusing, selfish, woman!" he laughed bitterly, staring down at what was left behind for him.

She was driving him crazy, here or not here. There was no way he was going to be able to forget about her now. It would have been better had she said something, spoken up, he would have gladly let her go. Wouldn't he? Sasuke wasn't sure and that puzzled him. He sat back against the counter, placing his hands back on the counter top and fixing a hard gaze on the food she had cooked for him.

He hadn't been this confused in a long while. He had never harbored strong feelings for a woman, and doubted he did now. He knew that he liked Hinata and he most certainly cared about her, but as far as _keeping _her around, he couldn't make up his mind. He had never fought for a woman, his previous girlfriends could testify for that. No, he did not treat them badly, in fact he actually took good care of those women. He took them out like any good boyfriend would, introduced them to his family when the time came around and listened intently to everything they said to him, but as far as chasing them when they said they wanted to leave, he didn't. He never got too attached to anyone so if they wanted to leave he allowed it. Sure, he missed their company every now and then, but he was never broken up over it. If a woman wanted to leave him then she had every right to do so. But Hinata was different.

He told himself, and would probably tell anyone who asked him, that if she wanted to leave he would allow it at any time, and yet... staring at the food she had made for him, remembering all of the joyful smiles she gave him, the fun conversations they had, he knew that if she said she wanted to leave, he would have tried to convince her not to. She wasn't his girlfriend, but he knew he would go to great lengths to keep her with him - he already had done a lot to ensure her safety as it was. This brows creased as he began thinking further. If only she had allowed him the opportunity; he would have...done something.

Right then he felt at a loss. He wasn't sure what to do but he knew he had to get her back. But firstly, he had to figure out why she had left exactly. Earlier, he thought it might have been because she felt she was a burden, but thinking about it now, that couldn't have been the only reason. There had to be more to it. What if Naruto called her? Did she had a cell phone? Then... if she _did _have one, why in God's name would she answer _his _call? Sasuke felt his jaw clench. It couldn't have been something _he _did because he was certain he was treating her properly. He had been the perfect gentlemen, allowing her her privacy and space, never getting too close to her physically, other than the time he had _almost _kissed her. God he had wanted to kiss her then.

Sasuke didn't allow himself time to figure out his feelings deeper, instead he packed the food back into the fridge because he had better things to do, like finding Hinata. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but he knew he needed to find her. He wasn't sure what he'd say to her, when he actually did _find _her; all he knew was that he needed to be where she was in order for the weird feeling of abandonment to go away. He needed to be with her. Wherever she was.

* * *

Don't forget to leave me a review, onegaishimasu!


	8. Country

**_The end is here everyone! AFL is over! (cries) I know I know, it's so soon! I hope you all enjoy the final chapter, I certainly enjoyed writing it._**

* * *

**Cover My Eyes**

KawaiixKisses

_Country_

* * *

The air felt and smelled different. The sun shone brightly in the morning and the stars and moon took over at night. It was much different from anything she had experienced in Tokyo. To be honest, she hadn't expected to enjoy it here so much. The people were friendly and kind, never bothered her too much about her reasons for being there or even asked where she had come from. They had seen her, broken and in need of a place to stay and had gladly welcomed her. Hinata was grateful that none of them had even recognized her. She was so far so deep in the countryside that people here hardly ever paid attention to what happened outside of it. They even had there own little government system. What did they care if Japan was changing Prime Ministers soon when they had their town sheriff? He was the one they answered to. In their community, he _was _the Prime Minister.

Hinata felt as though she could breathe for the first time in a long time. She didn't have to be afraid here, no one here knew of Naruto, or if they did they didn't care. It was the perfect place for her to start over. She could work and live here just fine. She didn't mind not having a ton of money or not living in a mansion. The opal-eyed runaway-wife was fine living amongst the humble people here.

She was staying with an elderly couple who agreed to have her board with them so long as she completed weekly chores. Hinata didn't mind. It had taken her a while to get used to everything but the elderly wife was kind and patient when teaching her how to tend to the chickens and how to maintain the yard. Other than that, they only asked her to keep the kitchen and her living space clean and she could live there rent-free for as long as she wanted to.

She had found a job a few days later at a local soup shop as a waitress and found the job fairly easy. Everyone was easy to get along with, she couldn't have been happier – that is until she was found.

He was a tall man, about the same age as her with dark brown hair, matching eyes and a toothy grin. He seemed friendly at first – much like everyone else – until his friendliness took a turn for the worse. Hinata wasn't as dim as it seemed when it came to romantic affairs, she could tell when someone was interested in her and this time was no different. She was standoffish towards him at first, always turning down his invitations politely. She didn't want to become involved with anyone, not yet at least. She couldn't say that she was a hundred percent over Naruto – though she was getting there – and then there were those messy feelings she had for Sasuke.

Sasuke.

Her mind would often drift towards him as the weeks rolled by. She missed him. He was a little crabby but was kind in his own way. He had taken care of her in the best way he knew how. Often, she regretted the way she had left him, without properly saying goodbye or even telling him where she had been going. She couldn't take the risk however. She knew her heart, understood it well. She knew that if she saw him she would not have been able to stick to her decision to leave Tokyo. She would have wanted to stay with him and that was something she could not do.

She was afraid for him. Afraid of what Naruto would do to him if he found out that he had been helping her, that she had been living with him, a man. There was no doubt in her mind that Naruto wouldn't have had him killed or at least had him "taken care of". Hinata couldn't live with herself knowing that something bad had happened to him because of her.

Her clenched each time she thought of him and it was becoming hard not to remember him each time she saw Kiba, the brown haired male.

She was shocked that afternoon when he called her out, shocked and scared.

"You're Lady Uzumaki aren't you? Yes! You look just like her!" he exclaimed, sitting comfortably in his seat behind the table.

Hinata had been placing a bowl of soup in front of him when his words startled her, causing her to jump and spill a bit of the soup on him.

"I'm so sorry," she said to him, placing the bowl down quickly and reaching for a towel.

She began patting his thigh, drying out the broth that spilled on his dark jeans.

"It's alright," he said, taking the towel from her and patting it out himself.

His dark eyes turned up to her once more, studying her face for a moment before smiling at her. "I'm right aren't I?"

Hinata gave no comment at first, only flashing him a weak smile.

"Lady Uzumaki? Are you sure I look like her?" she asked quietly, trying to seem vague and unaware.

Kiba only continued to smile, shaking his head slowly. "What are you doing here in our little town? This is no place for the Lady of Japan to be living – working no less. Are you lost?"

Hinata shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about, please enjoy your soup."

She hurried away and into the back in search of the owner.

"Hinata-san," he said to her as she entered his office.

He was a short, fat old man with a wrinkly baldhead and face. His smile was kind and gently however, reaching his eyes that were so tight they appeared to be only slits.

"What are you doing back here? Is everything alright?"

Hinata nodded her head. "Yes, I promised to help Baba-chan back at the house. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but I was hoping for the rest of the day off."

The owner only continued to smile, but Hinata knew he didn't believe her – she was the worst liar she knew. He nodded his head anyway, knowing that something must be wrong for her to be asking to leave. Hinata was grateful that he had not asked her what was bothering her and simply let her go.

She dashed out of the store, ignoring Kiba as he followed her out.

"Hey! Lady Uzumaki, wait up! Wait up!" he called after her.

Hinata continued to move however, not wanting to have to deal with any of this. She didn't want to be referred to as Uzumaki. There was a time where being an Uzumaki was all that she wanted but now the name sounded like some sick joke. Just a way for the God she was starting not to believe in, to make fun of her.

"Lady Uzumaki!"

"Leave me alone!" she screamed, breaking out into a run.

She didn't know how long she had been running for but after a while it had become apparent that he was no longer chasing after her. Hinata found herself by a river whose name she did not know. She sat down in the grass and pulled her knees up to her face. She hated this. Hated it. Everything was a mess.

It was like she couldn't escape no matter how badly she wanted to. Big fat tears began to roll out of her eyes and down her face, staining the modest kimono she wore. She stared down at her ugly and beaten up blue sneakers, suddenly wanting to go back home to the Hyuuga. She knew she couldn't however. Hiashi wouldn't understand. He wouldn't get why she no longer wanted to be with Naruto. If she divorced him Hiashi would never welcome her back into his home that is if Naruto even allowed the divorce to even happen. He'd never sign the papers, not in a millions years.

She looked out at the water feeling more alone than she ever did. She missed Sasuke. So much. She wanted to be where he was but knew that was impossible. Would he even take her back? Hinata doubted it. She rested her head on her knees and let out the sobs she had been holding back.

* * *

He couldn't lie to himself any longer. He missed her. Deeply missed her. Sasuke wasn't sure how the even was when she hadn't lived with him for that long, but he missed her. His apartment seemed too big without her there. It was cold too and quiet – not that she ever made a lot of noise. Part of him had been hoping that she would return on her own but when a week then finally two had gone by, he'd known that there was no way she'd willingly come back to him and so decided that he would have to take matters into his own hands.

He would have to find her on his own and if Naruto who had the money to hire private investigators could not find her then he knew it would be hard for him to find her all on his own.

Where would Hinata even go? He knew that she had fled Tokyo however; it was too dangerous for her to hang out in the city. He also doubted she'd go to another city; it was too heavily populated and obvious. People there would recognize her too easily. The only thing that was making sense to him was the country side. But which one?

Sasuke didn't want to be bothered with searching every last one Japan had to offer but it didn't seem like he had any other choice. If he was going to find Hinata he would have to be willing to do a ton of searching. She was worth it, he decided.

He didn't know where to start, but he figured the closest countryside was a good place to. It was six hours away, seven if you counted the amount of times he stopped for gas. The Uchiha was becoming increasingly irritated as the hours rolled by and was tempted to turn back quite a few times. He kept telling himself that it was for Hinata, that she was worth it. He wasn't going to go home without her, no matter how long it would take him to find her.

As he drove along the quite country roads he began to wonder what he would do when he found her. What should he say to her first? He thought of making up some lame excuse but decided against it. Hinata was not dumb; she would know that he was lying, even though she would probably never call him out on it. The truth was probably best, but how did he say it? Telling her what he was feeling wasn't exactly something he wanted to do, but would be obvious when he showed up looking for her. Part of him worried that she didn't feel the same. After all, she did leave without saying a word. Sasuke knew that wasn't true though, he saw the way she looked at him sometimes. He knew when he was going to kiss her that she wanted him to. However, he was still nervous somewhat. What if she rejected him?

Sasuke tightened his grip on the steering wheel. What would he do if he was rejected? He would look like a fool in front of her. He wasn't sure he wanted to put his feelings out there in the open so easily because she could just as well turn him down and if that happened he wasn't sure how he would react. He let out a sigh and pushed the thought aside for a while. He needed to concentrate on how he would convince her to come back to Tokyo. There was nothing there for her, not really. If she went back there was the possibility of her husband finding her and who knows what bad would come of her if she was found?

He continued driving down the dirt road, vaguely listening to the radio. His mind supplied him with images of her face. Her soft, pale skin and large white eyes that always made him feel like he wanted to do something for her; make her smile and laugh. He missed seeing her long dark hair, the way it smelled like vanilla and how soft it was. He remembered the way it felt against his fingers that time he tried to kiss her. Sasuke regretted not doing so, he couldn't even remember what reason he gave himself for stopping – they both wanted it.

The Uchiha promised himself that he would not stop the next time he was given the opportunity. He would make her his. His grip on the steering wheel tightened more. He needed to find her soon.

It was another hour or so before a small town came into view. The Uchiha peered out the windshield expectantly as the car began to slow down. He had made it to his first stop and now his search would begin. He drove slowly down the dirt road, noticing that he was the only car on it, everyone else was either walking or on a bicycle.

He continued to look around for a while before deciding to get out and go on foot. He found an empty parking lot and parked his car and headed down the street once more. Where should he start? He supposed he could ask around, maybe someone had seen her. He continued to walk until he came upon a group of women in their mid-twenties, possibly the same age as Hinata. They looked up at him and smiled pleasantly.

"Hello," one of them said.

She was taller than the rest and had blonde, messy hair and a toothy grin.

"Good afternoon," he said politely. "I'm looking for someone and I'm wondering if you've seen her, her name's Hinata."

The blonde girl's mouth twitched slightly but never letting her smile fade. The others looked to each other with worried expressions.

"I don't know anyone by that name," the blonde told him.

Sasuke wasn't buying it. "She's kind of short, long dark hair, pale eyes?"

"Haven't seen anyone like that," the blonde said firmly, letting him know the conversation was over.

Sasuke become suspicious. What was all that about? It was obvious she was hiding something from him.

"What about any of you," he asked, turning his attention to the four other girls.

They all shook their heads, turning her eyes down from him. Sasuke was growing annoyed. If they knew something why wouldn't they help him? He couldn't force them to speak however and let it go for the moment – there were other people in the town.

"Alright," he said after a few awkward moments of silence.

He turned away from the women and continued down the road. Somebody had to know something, even if those girls weren't willing to tell him. Their awkwardness told him that he was right to come here and that somewhere in this town was Hinata, he just had to find her.

He asked around a few more times but no one was willing to help him out. Everyone he asked either avoided his questions or lied directly to his face. Why were they hiding her? Sasuke doubted she told them of who she was and why she was running, she should have known better to trust anyone so easily. Sasuke was determinded to find out just what the hell was going on here.

The Uchiha found himself walking back to his car later that evening, the sun was setting and he figured it would be a good time for him to find a place to stay. Perhaps there was an inn somewhere around here that he could stay in for the night and rest up before continuing his search the next day. As he approached his car he noticed a man standing by it, peering into the windows. He pulled on the handle a couple of times before giving up and looking around; his brown eyes found Sasuke's.

He must have recognized him as an outsider and the obvious owner of the vehicle because the moment their gazes met he took off running. Sasuke's eyes widened and before he could even think about it he found himself running after the man. He was a lot faster than Sasuke had anticipated. The brown haired male ran down the dirt road quickly, easily evading bystanders as he rushed away from Sasuke who was hot on his trail. The Uchiha followed behind him, moving as fast as he could as the male turned quickly, almost stumbling. Sasuke sucked his teeth angrily as he tripped over his feet but quickly stood again and continued his chase. The Uchiha was becoming increasingly impatient before his hand finally caught hold of the man's collar and the both of them came crashing to the ground.

"Oy! Lemme go!" the male hissed, trying to push Sasuke off of him but to no avail.

Sasuke held strong to the man's collar, keeping him pressed against the dirt.

"What were you doing near my car?" Sasuke demanded, holding him down.

The male cursed and continued to struggle. "I was only looking at it, man! Leggo!"

"Then why did you run?"

"I dunno, just let me go before I get angry!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes and pushed him down harder. "I'm going to ask you a question and you had better answer me honestly."

The male sucked his teeth, earning him another shove from Sasuke, further dirtying his clothes and face.

"I'm looking for a woman named Hinata, do you know who that is?"

The male was quiet. "Why should I tell you?"

Sasuke slammed his head against the ground, growing irritated. "Answer the fucking question!"

The male hissed in pain. "Lady Uzumaki?"

_Lady Uzumaki? _Why would he be calling her that? Sure, that was her official name, but that would mean he knew who she really was.

"How do you know that name?"

"Everyone knows that name. We may be small but we're not immune to the outside world. We know all about Lady Uzumaki and the missing person's search on her."

Huh. If they knew then why was everyone so bent on keeping him away from her?

"Why won't anyone talk about her?"

"How should I know man? She ran off when I called her that…"

She ran off? He had spoken to her then.

"Do you know where she might be?"

The man was quiet for a long time. "No."

Sasuke slammed him down again.

"Alright! Alright! She works at this soup shop on Kawaza Street. _Isaki._"

Sasuke let up on him and the male quickly stood to his feet, looking as if he wanted to fight. The look on Sasuke's face must have scared him because he quickly disappeared.

* * *

Hinata was afraid to return to work the next day. She worried all night that Kiba would be there and ready to harass her. She didn't want to deal with that but it couldn't be helped. She needed to keep working if she was going to live properly. It was true that the old couple provided her with food and shelter but she needed money still. She didn't want to always depend on them. Hinata hoped to one day move out and find a place of her own.

She walked into _Isaki _fully prepared to take on Kiba and a barrage of questions he may have for her.

"Good morning," she greeted the guests quietly as she walked back to the kitchen.

She was wearing another simple kimono that day. It was yellow with a flowers printed all over it and a red sash* tied around the middle.

"Good morning," she said to the owner, passing him by as she headed for the bathroom to wash her hands.

"There's a man out there, waiting for you," he said nervously to her.

Hinata looked to him, her face dropping and worry taking over her features. A man was looking for her. Naruto. He had found her and he was there to take her back to Tokyo. No! He would kill her before they even reached Tokyo. Hinata's eyes darted around, searching for the nearest exit.

"Calm down," he told her, taking her hands in his. "Relax, it'll be okay."

Hinata's eyes settled on him. "H-how? Y-y-you don't understand… he-he'll…"

"He won't do anything. We won't let anything happen to you."

Hinata stared at him for a while, understanding that he knew. The whole time he knew. He knew she was running and knew who she was too. He, like everyone else, had understood that she must have been going through something horrible if she ran away from such a lavish life to settle down in the countryside, living in a stranger's home and making barely any money at all. They all understood and wanted to protect her. Her eyes filled with tears. Everyone was always protecting her. When would she protect herself? She didn't have time to figure that out because he hurried her out to the sitting area where the guests were.

She looked down at her feet, not ready to face Naruto. What would he say to her? What would she say to _him_? Part of her worried that the old man wouldn't be able to keep his promise. Naruto was a scary man and could do things that would hurt these people, badly. She didn't want anyone to get hurt, especially not these people who had been so kind and understanding of her since she arrived. She would go with Naruto. That was the only way to protect these people. She had to beg Naruto to spare them, convince him that she acted alone and they were completely unaware of her so that he would take his anger out solely on her. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if anything happened to this town because of her.

She looked up then, but who she saw wasn't Naruto or Kiba. Someone completely unexpected was there instead. Someone she had longed for the entire time. Someone she couldn't keep herself from thinking about. Someone who had sacrificed so much for her and continued to do so by even being there. Sasuke.

"Sasuke-san…"

Tears spilled down her cheeks at the sight of him there. He was tall and handsome, just as she had remembered him. His dark hair looked a little longer and was almost touching his shoulders. His black eyes looked tired and worried but there was a bit of relief there too.

"You forgot to say goodbye."

He was so cheesy but that didn't stop her from smiling and running into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face against his chest, breathing in the smell of him.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-san… I missed you," she admitted softly, pressing closer to him.

He was stunned but wrapped her in his arms anyway, delighting in the pleased sigh she let out. God he missed this woman. He held her tighter – he'd never had the chance to do so before and wasn't sure if such an opportunity would come again. He would take advantage of it.

The two were silent for a while before she broke apart from him and looked up at his face.

"What are you doing here? How did you f-find me?"

"Didn't want me to look for you?" he asked teasingly, brushing her hair back from her face to get a better look.

"N-no! I –"

"No? I guess I should go home then…"

"Sasuke-san…" she said softly, her eyes tearing up.

Sasuke smiled at her, enjoying teasing her. She always made the cutest expressions.

"Of course not without you though."

Her face dropped. "N-no…"

He stared at her. "No?"

Hinata shook her head and pulled herself from him completely. "I can't go back there. What if Naruto…"

Sasuke understood. There was always the problem of Naruto. He couldn't bring himself to force her back to his apartment where she would be locked up and afraid. At least here she could walk around freely and speak to people. She had the chance at life here in this small remote town. She could breathe and be happy here. She wouldn't have that in Tokyo, not while Naruto was there.

"Then I'll stay here with you."

Her eyes shot up. _Then I'll stay here with you. _Sasuke was sacrificing so much for her already just by helping her. Asking him to stay here in this small town that had almost nothing was too much.

"You d-don't have to do that…" she said at last, looking down at her feet.

"I want to."

It was silent between them for a long while before Sasuke continued.

"The air is cleaner here than it is in Tokyo and the people are a lot kinder…"

"Eh?"

"You didn't think I was staying for you did you?"

"N-no, I mean I –"

"When I said 'with you' I didn't mean '_with _you'…" he teased.

Hinata's face turned beat red. "O-of course not, Sasuke-san… I."

"Yeah, yeah," he said, smiling down at her as she fidgeted nervously.

"Hinata," he said to her.

She looked up at him once more and her blush deepened. He was giving her that look again. His eyes and expression was much softer as he gently ran his hand through her hair and cupped her cheek then the other one too. He held her face in place so that she wouldn't be able to move if she wanted to. She watched as he dipped his head, her eyes slowly shutting in anticipation and when his lips touched hers for the first time, butterflies erupted in the pit of her stomach. Sasuke…

_I love you. _

* * *

**_* I'm not really familiar with Kimonos so you'll have to forgive me._**

**_Anyway! I got you all! This is _**_not **the end of All For Love. Obviously there has to be the confrontation between Hinata/Sasuke and Naruto! And of course the Lemon chapter! I know I know, Hinata and Sasuke getting it on in this story doesn't seem to fit, but it will. I'll make it fit! LMAO (perv-humor) Anyway. Thanks for reading this chapter, I know I've had you all waiting fora long time, but at least it was only a month this time around, not 6 like it was for CME. Anyway, please leave me a review, motivate me to write, and possibly check my spelling v.v**_


	9. Angel

**_Hello darlings. How are you all? Good I hope. Anyway, I know it's been a while since I updated this story and I am very sorry to have kept so many waiting. I've been dealing with a lot and I just haven't had the motivation to write anything for a long while. I actually had to force myself to write the last story I started. _**

**_Anyway, if I stick to my plan then there are only two more chapters until AFL is complete. I'm excited to tell you the truth. I've never actually _finished _a multi-chapter story yet. I look forward to posting it and reading what everyone has to say. I wrote this chapter while listening to "Angel Of Mine" by Monica. Might be cool to listen to the song while reading the second scene, you'll know how I was feeling and what I was trying to bring to the scene. Well, on to the story. Enjoy._**

* * *

**All For Love**

KawaiixKisses

_Angel_

* * *

Months had gone by when Naruto finally decided that he had had enough. How dare Hinata run away from him – abandon him – after everything they had been through? Had she not considered what her leaving would mean for him? Probably not. All she ever did was think of herself. Naruto let out an exasperated sigh from behind his desk.

He was in his office, as per usual, ignoring the stack of papers that called for his signature. He couldn't bring himself to concentrate on work when a pair of stormy eyes clouded his thoughts. He needed her back desperately – he couldn't handle it alone anymore.

At first, he was only slightly annoyed by her absence. He figured she would be back after a few days but when she didn't return he began to worry. What if she never came back? What if something had happened to her out there? Hinata didn't know how to do anything. She had never had the need to work and Naruto positive she wouldn't be able to make it alone. Someone was always taking care of her. Always. That had to mean that even now, there was someone helping her.

Naruto had hunted down her two "friends" and demanded that they tell him anything they knew about her whereabouts. The two had sung the same tune, telling him they had absolutely no idea of what had happened to their demure friend – she hadn't been answering their calls. Of course she hadn't, Naruto had thought to himself, she left her phone at home; he had found it in her purse.

Hinata had everything a woman could possibly want. A large, expensively decorated, mansion to live in. A husband who made more than enough money to support her and her every whim – shopping sprees around the world, trips to the spa, dinner at the best restaurants, vacations in exotic locations and six star pent suites. The woman had it all. And she threw it all away. For what? _For what? _

Naruto could feel the anger bubbling within him, his hands balling into fists. Who else could do her better than him? Where else could she be happier than by his side? Who else would love her more than he did? No one. For Hinata there was no one other than him for her. Why couldn't she understand that? Why didn't she know? Why didn't she get that they were meant for each other and that no one else would be able to cut it? No other woman would be good enough for him because none of them would be like Hinata. No other _man _would be good enough for Hinata either. They were a perfect match – a set. They were made with each other in mind. How could she not get that? How could she betray him like that? Didn't she understand that he needed her? Especially after Akira died? Who else was going to be by his side? The thought of her never coming back pissed him off. He was going to find her and make her understand that she was his and he was hers. There would be no separation between them ever again.

"Uzumaki-_sama_," a voice called from behind the door to his office, following a soft rapping.

The blonde pushed himself back in his chair, sighing deeply. He wasn't in the mood for the botheration. He wanted to be alone and wallow in self-pity for a bit longer. However, there were certain things that were simply unavoidable.

"Come in," he answered the request.

A woman with bright red hair appeared from behind the opening door. Her fiery hair was spun into bun at the back of her head. Her red eyes looked at him nervously behind a pair of glasses that sat perched on her nose. She wore a white dress-suit and red pumps, a bit too sexy for the office but Naruto couldn't be bothered with teaching every woman who worked for him etiquette and proper attire for the work place. It would just go in one ear and out the other.

"I have good news," she said to him, adjusting her glasses.

She was carrying a manilla envelope, tucked neatly under her arm. Naruto arched a brow at her, placing his hands behind his head in a casual manner. The redhead fought the urge to squirm under his scrutiny. His cyan eyes were so icy and terrifying – it had only gotten worse since Lady Uzumaki went missing. There were rumors that the demure wife hadn't been kidnapped as Naruto's publicist had made it seem. Many believed the first lady had run away. Karin wouldn't be surprised if that turned out to be true. Naruto was a scary man. Karin only had to see him during the work week and there would be days where she didn't need to speak to him at all. His wife on the other hand... well, she didn't get a break from him cold glares and icy conversation like everyone else did. Then again... there was a possibility that Naruto was a dream husband but a monster boss. Karin doubted that the moment the thought entered her brain.

Her gaze flickered nervously and she caught herself biting on her bottom lip before her voice sounded at last. "We've got a solid lead on your wife."

Naruto sat up in his chair, leaning closer to his desk. "Go on."

Karin swallowed past the lump that had lodged itself in her throat. "Well," she said, stepping closer and placing the envelope down on the desk for him to open. "She's been spotted in a small town outside of the city – a few hours away from here."

Naruto opened the folder and dumped it's contents on the desk. There were dozens of pictures of her inside of it. He picked them up and went through every last frame. She was smiling in a lot of them, that same little shy smile she used to make back when they were dating and the first year of their marriage. Her hair was scooped up most of the time in the pictures, just a few hairs rebelling against whatever had been binding the rest back.

"She's been working in a Ramen shop."

"Where has she been living?" Naruto asked at last, flipping through more of the pictures and studying her face and surroundings.

"With an elderly couple. They don't seem hostile, so I'm not sure if she's being held there against her will, but if she is, those two most certainly are not the ones keeping her there" Karin informed him. She tapped one of the pictures. "That's the house."

Naruto stared at it. It was a small, quaint, abode with charming characteristics – the kind of place Hinata fell had over heels for. Naruto was certain that the couple had fell in love with her instantly. Hinata was that kind of person. She was shy and sweet and adorable – like a puppy really. Of course someone would pity her and take her in.

"Thank you, Karin."

The redhead nodded slowly. It had taken her forever to track down the woman. When the P.I. gave her the pictures, Karin was surprised by the easy expression the woman wore in all of the pictures. She didn't seem stressed or worried, not even scared. If anyone were to ask her, Karin would say that the first lady was happy where she was. Her gut was telling her that was the truth about it. Hinata Uzumaki was happy there in that small town. She felt bad for ratting her out like that, but she had a job to do, even if Naruto was a monster.

"Cancel all of my meetings for the rest of the week. In fact, I want you to defer them to the second in command," Naruto told her, standing to his feet and sliding on his suit. "But before that, I want you to print out a map to this town."

Karin nodded her head and rushed out to her desk to get on his request lest he direct a bit of his anger at her. Little did she know, Naruto was not angry at all. In fact, he was relieved. Hinata had been found and she was safe. Now, all he had to do was go there and take her back to her home and they could resume their lives together. He made a note that getting angry with her would not help him. He didn't want to have to take her by force, he wanted her to come on her own. He would have to sell himself to her.

"Karin," he said, stepping out of his office and peering at her behind her desk.

"I've got it," she exclaimed nervously, snatching the map from the printer and handing it to him quickly. When she looked up at him she was surprised to find him smiling.

"Thank you," he said, taking the map and folding it neatly before placing it into his pocket. "One more thing before I go; call up Hinata's favorite jeweler and tell them to clear a room for me, I need the best of what they've got."

Karin, staring wide-eyed at her boss's happy grin, nodded her head slowly.

"Well... don't just stare..." he instructed, waving his hand a bit.

"Yes, sir!"

Naruto continued to smile as he walked down the hall of his office building. The next few days were bound to be good ones.

* * *

"That's the last of it," husky man with a broad smile told the brand new couple.

Hinata stood beside Sasuke, who just days ago decided to stay in the small town with her. They hadn't talked about it, but it was obvious that they were together now. Hinata was happy, truly, truly happy for the first time in a really long time. She had almost forgotten what it had felt like to feel this way.

"Thank you," Sasuke said to the man, handing him the check like he had promised him.

The husky man smiled and nodded his head to Hinata before taking his leave. The two of them watched as he hoped into his truck and rolled off with his crew. Sasuke had just purchased a new apartment for the two of them to stay in and the men before had helped them move. He hadn't brought everything from his old place, but just the essentials.

Hinata worried for a few days over them moving in together. It was true that she had lived with him before, but now it was different. Now they would be living together as a couple. Sasuke had assured her that everything would be fine. Nothing major would change.

"We'll just be sleeping in the same bed," he had teased her.

Sasuke hadn't left his job though, not yet anyway. For now he would take the long commute to and from the city and the town a few days out of the week until he could find work here. He told her that he wouldn't be satisfied working in a little store somewhere, although that seemed to be the only places the town had to offer. After the first few days, Sasuke had found out about another town about a half hour away from the one they were currently in. It was bigger and had the kind of working places Sasuke longed for. Hinata would support him no matter what, however, whether he wanted to work in another town or in a small shop like her, she would be by his side the whole time.

Sasuke shut the door and turned to her, a small, barely noticeable smile on his lips. "It's just us now," he said to her.

Hinata smiled and blushed lightly, walking into his arms and allowing him to pull her close. She cherished these moments. Sasuke was like an angel sent from heaven just for her, despite all his prickly sides. He was good to her, he was good to everyone really. You just had to squint your eyes and tilt your head a little to see the kindness in him. She was lucky though, she didn't have to squint her eyes or turn her head. She could see his kindness as clear as day.

"You smell nice," she said softly to him, resting her head against his muscular chest.

"I showered," he teased lightly, pulling her hair down from the bun she wore it in that day and running his fingers through the silky locks.

He loved her hair. It was so long and soft. He had always been a sucker for women with long hair and with Hinata it was no different. He liked the fact that she didn't bleach a color unnatural from her own. He couldn't stand it when Asian women did that. He liked the dark hair his people had, especially on women. It clashed against their pale skin beautifully – even more so with Hinata who's skin and eyes were both so pale.

His hands traveled up and down her back, stopping just above her derriere before going back up. He didn't dare to go lower despite how much he wanted to. He had to be careful with Hinata. She was already so fragile, sometimes he worried that he would break her or hurt her somehow. He didn't want to scare her away, especially since he had just gotten her.

"Sasuke..." she said quietly, tilting her head up to look at him.

He loved it when she said his name like that. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. "Hm?"

"Are you happy?" she asked him, studying his face.

His lips twitched slightly, forming a lopsided grin as he continued to rub her back. "Yes. Are you happy, Hinata?"

She smiled the most beautifully smile for him. "Of course; I get to be with Sasuke."

The male chuckled lightly before cupping her face in his hands and leaning down to capture her lips with his. The best part about them being together, was the fact that he could kiss her as much as he wanted to. No longer did he have to worry about holding back. He could kiss her wherever and whenever he pleased and she would return his affections every time.

Hinata pressed herself closer to him, licking his lips lightly. He held her tighter to him, sucking her tongue into his mouth and earning himself a soft moan of appreciation from Hinata. Her tiny hands delved into his hair, her fingers tangling in the black tresses and holding his face closer to hers. Moments like these were pure bliss for the both of them. All the fighting and holding back their feelings were history now. They were free to express their attraction at last.

Hinata had been just as relieved as Sasuke was when they had finally gotten together. Now they could finally show each other how much they were loved and cared for. Now they could hold each other and never have to say goodnight or goodbye. They were in their own little, private, world.

"Sasuke," she whispered against his lips, arching her back and pressing herself closer to him, the action innocent yet temping nevertheless.

Sasuke groaned at the feel of her full breasts pressing against his chest. He reached down and grabbed the back of her thighs, pulling her up. Hinata instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist, holding onto him as he began carrying her to _their_ bedroom.

He laid her down carefully on the bed, crawling over her and moving his lips roughly over hers. Hinata continued to moan into their kiss, her hands sliding down his back and grabbing hold of his shirt. Sasuke began to trail kisses from her lips and down her neck, making a slow path and giving her the chance to finally breathe.

"Sasuke..." she moaned softly, sliding her hands under his shirt and admiring the muscles of his back as they moved.

The male nibbled and sucked on her pulse, enjoying the soft murmurs of pleasure she made in his ear. Unable to stand the wall their close made between them, the pale eyes woman began pulling his shirt up, distracting him from her throat. He sat up, his eyes dark with lust as he helped her pull his shirt off.

"Is that better?" he asked her.

Her hungry eyes gazed and marveled at every muscle she discovered. She had felt them before, through his shirt, but had never seen them. Sasuke was beautiful.

"Yes," she answered softly, sliding her hands against the expansion of his chest.

Sasuke allowed her to explore him, watching her face as she touched and felt everything from his abs to his arms.

"What are you going to show me, Hinata?" he asked after a few moments, looking down at her still.

Her face filled with heat. She hadn't even considered the fact that he might want to see her. What if he saw the scars and decided he didn't want her anymore? They were hideous gashes in her skin that no matter how much she prayed, no matter how many different lotions she tried, she just couldn't get rid of.

"I..." she said nervously. "S-Sasuke... I..."

Sasuke didn't quite understand why she was so hesitant now. She had seemed more than willing a moment ago. Perhaps he had been a bit too forward with her? Although to be fair, she was the one who took his clothes off first.

"It's alright" he said to her, taking her hands and kissing her knuckles softly. "I understand if you're not ready."

Hinata looked up at him, holding back the tears that stung the back of her eyes. Here she was, in bed with the most beautiful man she had ever met in her entire life – the very same man who had saved her and kept her safe from the monster who terrorized her for years. The same man who dropped everything just to be with her every day. He was the man who loved her more than anyone else had ever dared to. And yet... she was ashamed.

She didn't feel as beautiful as he told her she was. She didn't feel as attractive as he thought she was. Naruto had ruined that for her – he had stole her happiness from her and now she couldn't even make love with Sasuke because of him. She bit into her bottom lip, watching as he kissed her fingers, opening her hands and kissing her palms. Sasuke loved her. He was so gentle and willing to wait for her to be ready. However, it wasn't that she wasn't _ready_, she was. She wanted to be as beautiful as he made her feel. She wanted to be the most beautiful woman he had ever seen – Hinata had never felt that way before.

"I have scars," she whispered softly to him, tears rolling slowly out of her eyes.

Sasuke opened his eyes and looked down at her face. Letting go of her hands, he wiped her tears away. "Don't cry, Hinata," he told her. "I don't want you to ever cry again."

She sniffled softly, trying to hold them back but they kept coming anyway. Sasuke leaned down and planted soft kisses to her closed eyelids, licking away her tears. "If you have to cry," he said softly. "I want it to be because you're happy."

She opened her eyes and looked up at him. Sasuke the Angel.

"I love you," she told him.

Sasuke smiled. Not one of those tiny smiles he made every now and then. He smiled for real now and Hinata's heart skipped a beat at the sight of it.

"I love you too," he said to her, kissing her hands again.

She was quiet for a long while, enjoying the feel of his lips against her skin and allowing the words to sink in. While she knew she was loved, he had never verbalized it, although, neither had she. It felt good to say it and know for sure that he felt the same way about her. She wasn't the only one in love here.

Slowly, she pulled her hands away from him, causing him to open his eyes and look at her curiously. She reached down slowly for her shirt hem and began pulling it up.

"Hinata... you don't have to," he told her, reaching for her hands.

"No," she said to him, pulling her shirt off completely. "I w-want you to s-see me."

Sasuke studied her face, his eyes never leaving hers as she began unbuckling her bra. Her white eyes locked with his black ones, her hands moving down and unzipping her jeans pushing them down along with her panties. Even when she was completely naked beneath him, Sasuke's eyes never left hers. He wanted to see it – he wanted to know when or if she hesitated or changed her mind about this. He wanted it badly, but he didn't want to risk her well-being. Hinata had a lot of problems that she was still dealing with and he knew there were somethings she had yet to tell him. He would wait. For all of it he would wait. He would wait for her secrets, he would wait for her body. He wanted her and so he would wait for her.

"Hinata... are you –"

"I want to make love," she said to him softly.

He could see it in her eyes, the determination, but also the nervousness. He cupped her cheek and snuggled her face into his hand, her eyes closing slowly for a few moments before opening once again. Only then did he allow himself to look.

His dark eyes traveled over every inch of her body. She did have scars, a lot more than he had expected there to be, but it didn't matter to him. She was still Hinata – still the woman he loved more than everything else in this world. She mattered to him more than anyone or thing. Nothing had ever been as important to him as Hinata was. Unlike with the other woman who had walked into his life, Sasuke would never allow her to walk out so easily. He would fight for this woman.

"You're beautiful Hinata," he told her, looking at all of her body.

"You're just saying that..." she said softly.

"I am," he teased lightly.

Hinata knew better than to be offended. That was just Sasuke, her prickly angel. She smiled at him, watching as he unzipped his jeans and pushed them off along with his boxers. And now they were finally together, both bare and vulnerable. Both exposed to the other more than they had ever been before. Both madly in love.

Sasuke opened her legs wider and leaned over her so that they were face to face. She laid her hands above her head, looking up at him, feeling the tip of his desire probing her entrance. Slowly and carefully, he slid into her and her breath caught in her throat.

"Sasuke..." she moaned softly, her eyes closing half-way.

He pushed himself all the way into her and closed his hands around her wrists, pinning her down. Normally, this would have bothered her, but she knew that Sasuke would never do anything to hurt her. He would never make her feel the way Naruto did. She wanted to be beneath him, she wanted to be held by him and touched by him. She adored his kisses and couldn't get enough of his embraces.

Hinata moaned as he began rocking his hips, thrusting in and out of her slow and hard. She wrapped her legs around his waist, holding him to her. She enjoyed the soft groans he made each time she squeezed him tighter inside of her, they way his eyes lowered and his body tensed. He was amazing to watch.

He began thrusting harder and faster, her body bouncing off of his with each thrust that was delivered to her. She moaned loudly, her back arching and her eyes drifting shut.

"Look at me," he told her, thrusting harder and harder.

Her white eyes fluttered open at his command without hesitation.

"Don't close your eyes," he told her.

Hinata nodded her head, moaning louder.

"You hear me?" he asked her, his thrusts getting rougher, earning more appreciative sighs and moans from her.

"Yes...! Yes..." she moaned, struggling to keep her eyes opened.

Sasuke watched as she bit into her bottom lip, enjoying the way her brows furrowed and sweat beaded on her forehead. The sound of her moaning for him was unlike anything he had expected. It was the most wonderful thing he had ever heard, forget what he thought earlier.

She closed her eyes half way, moaning louder and arching her back more, her legs locking onto him as did her walls.

"Cheater..." Sasuke groaned, referring to her half opened eyes and thrusting harder into her, determined to bring her to climax.

"Sasuke!" she moaned loudly, practically screamed.

She did the most amazing thing he had ever seen her do before just then. It was magical. Her heels dug into his back and her fingers scratched at his hands as the first climax she had received in years blew through her. She finally gave up and let her eyes roll back as the pleasure bounced around inside of her, causing her to quake and shiver. Sasuke, continued to thrust and stroke throughout her orgasm, proud of his accomplishment. He leaned down and pressed his forehead against hers, slowing his thrusts.

"I love you," she whispered to him, her eyes opening slowly.

He closed his eyes and smiled, thrusting slowly still. "I love you too, Hinata."

* * *

_Thank you for reading this chapter. I cannot tell you when I am going to update this story again, I'm hoping that it is soon. I've decided that in order to be fair to readers who favor certain stories over the others that I will update in order based on reviews and alerts too now. I can see who's really interested in what stories and which ones to put priority on better that way. I appreciate each and every review, I really do, however I think that alerts should be taken into consideration as well. Don't think that I don't want reviews based on what I just said, trust me I do. I'll just be taking alerts into consideration along with reviews for updates. _

_Tell me what you thought of the lemon. I was a bit unsure of how it should go down since Hinata is so messed up because of Naruto's abuse. I think I did a good job for the lemon, but I still want your opinion, be honest. I didn't want to go all out and make it really hot and sexy, I wanted it to be a more emotional thing rather than them just fucking, you know? I'm rambling now. Review, onegaishimasu. _

_~ Kawaii_


	10. For Love

**_You better love me for this. I have a 9:30 am class tomorrow yet here I am, updating for you all. I tell you one thing, I better get some god damn reviews for this. Hmph! I'm kidding lol. ... Well, partly. I would like some reviews._**

* * *

**All For Love**

_KawaiixKisses_

For Love

* * *

It was warm out, the sun shinning and the leaves of tree tops rustled as a light wind blew by. The sky was painted a soft blue, white puffy clouds scattered here and there. The air was even fresher, easier to breathe than the polluted city air. Naruto noted all of that as he stepped out of his car.

"Shikoku..." Naruto said to himself, peering around the main street of the village.

"Uzumaki-sama," a feminine voice called to him.

Karin, his red haired secretary climbed slowly out of the passenger side of his car, closing the door carefully and peering around the street. There was a soft humming about the place as people went about their every day lives, smiling and chatting with one another.

"Hn?"

The fiery-haired woman cleared her throat, pushing her glasses up her nose once before speaking again. "Where would you like to try first?" she asked him. "Her job or the house?"

Naruto looked down at his shoes – black Gucci loafers. His mind was filled with thoughts of his white eyed wife. He missed her greatly. He left the city knowing that winning her back was not going to be easy. He had allowed her to be away for nearly five months now and there was no doubt in his mind that she was probably happy where she was. However, he couldn't ignore the tight feeling in his chest, the turning and twisting in the pit of his stomach that happened whenever he thought of her happy in a place where he was not present. He knew, understood perfectly well, that he had not been the best husband to her.

He remembered the way her skin looked, marred by blemishes and bruises he himself had placed on her. She looked so broken, worn and tired and it was his fault. A woman of her youth shouldn't look as she did... Those eyes. Those, broken, empty white eyes. He wasn't sure how he was going to do it, but he knew he had to show her that he could change. He wanted to change for her, he wanted to be the reason she smiled again. No one could replace Akira, but perhaps they could have more children. They were both still young and they could afford a child for sure. They could rebuild their marriage and that love of theirs could take human form once again.

"Her home," he said after a while. He didn't want to cause a scene.

The two got back into the car and took off again, Naruto listening to the directions she fed him. It wasn't long before they arrived at Hinata's home. A traditional red stoned Japanese house that had been turned into a duplex with an upturned roof. There were green trees and shrubs all around the estate and a birdbath in the front, just behind the gate.

The two sat in the car for a long while, Karin flashing curious glances at the blonde every now and then – she was smart enough to speak however.

Naruto turned off the engine and leaned back in his seat, staring out the windshield. Hinata was so close yet so far away from him at the same time.

"_Naruto, I love you," she said to him, water filling her cloudy eyes. "No other man can or ever will make me as happy as you have. I'm grateful to have met someone like you, to have a man like you love me is incredible. You've been there for me when I needed you most and made me feel like life is worth living. Every morning I wake up and I'm glad to see your face next to mine. I'm more than willing to give myself to you – my life to you. You are the man I know will love me more than anyone else ever has. You mean everything to me and nothing could ever change that. I promise to make you as happy as you make me. I promise to be a good wife to you and to always hold you higher than anyone else. I promise you myself forever."_

Naruto could feel the pressure at the backs of his eyes building up. Hinata had been so beautiful that day. He remembered the look her stormy eyes held, the love that radiated from her as she recited her vows to him. She had been so happy that day. Clad in pure white, she was the most breathtakingly beautiful woman he had ever seen. He could hardly believe that such a woman believed in him and loved him with everything that she had. He wouldn't have been surprised to find that it had all been a lie or a fantasy and that he was just sleeping in his bed or in a comma some place.

He let go of the stirring wheel and dug into his right pocket, pulling out a little black swede box. He thumbed the top, rubbing his digit against the material for while before pulling it open. Inside sat a series of white diamonds fashioned into a flower formation and held by a platinum band to form a ring.

His last hope.

This ring was the last thing he could give to her other than his heart. That's all he had. His heart and the ring. He wanted one last chance to make things right. He wanted to give her the life she deserved and make up for all the mistake he had made, all the wrong he had done to her. She was a special kind of woman. Who was he to treat her in the way that he had?

It took him a while to get it, but he did now and all he wanted was his wife back. He wanted to make better between them and start their family again. He owed her that. He owed Akira that.

"Are we going to go in side?" a voice asked, disrupting his thoughts.

Naruto didn't look away from the ring immediately. His cyan eyes blinked a few times before he shut the box and slid it back into his pocket.

"Yeah," he said at last, unbuckling his seat belt and climbing out of the car to win his woman back.

* * *

Hinata sat perched by the breakfast bar, watching as Sasuke clumsily flipped a pancake, a bright smile plastered to her lips.

"Don't make that face at me," Sasuke told her, fumbling around with the pancake, a frustrated look claiming his features.

"You're doing it wrong, honey," she told him, giggling softly.

Normally, Hinata wasn't one for nicknames in a relationship, but with Sasuke she couldn't help herself. He always looked so flustered and at a loss for words when she got like that. It was cute. Usually, she was the awkward one between the two of them so it was nice to know that she affected him in the same way that he did her.

"How am I doing it wrong?" he asked, sulking as he flipped over the pancake to see that it was burned.

"Here, just let me do it," she said to him, sliding down from her stole and walking around the bar.

"No, get away from me, I can do it," he argued, lifting up the pan and the spatula as she came around for them.

"Sasuke!" she exclaimed, smiling and reaching up for the cooking utensils, grabbing his shirt and standing on her tip-toes. "Don't be like that."

"I don't need your help, I can do it," he told her, frowning at her.

She grabbed at his collar, pulling him down so that they were face to face. His black eyes stared into her white ones and he was lost. She knew how to get him, what to do in order to have her way when it came to Sasuke. She was just as cunning as any of his other girlfriends had been, Sasuke discovered, despite her demure demeanor.

He lowered his arms slightly, tilting his head down, his lips descending on hers slowly. Hinata allowed her eyes to drift shut as she anticipated his kiss, moaning in appreciation as his lips met hers. She pressed herself against him and deepened the kiss and as if on cue he set down the pan and spatula on the stove.

His strong arms wrapped themselves around her waist, pulling her closer to him as he parted her lips with his tongue, exploring her mouth. His endeavor earned him a few dreamy sighs and soft moans from his small girlfriend, her hands wandering around his back, searching for and groping the muscles she found there.

"Sasuke..." she whispered against his lips as they broke apart for air.

He slid his hands down to grab her by the back of her thighs, lifting her up and placing her on the counter. Her hands delved into his hair, pulling him down again and dipping her tongue into his mouth, searching for his in return. His hands traveled up, caressing and feeling on her curves.

"Sasu – "

The sound of the smoke detector going off interrupted the two of them, Sasuke pulling back first, his eyes landing on the frying pan.

"Shit," he swore, pulling himself from her and tending to the blackened pancake, fanning away the smoke.

Hinata smiled at him, watching as he dumped the hotcake into the trash and began washing the pan, giving up on their breakfast all together.

"I love you," she said to him.

Sasuke tossed her a glance before turning his attention back to the pan. "Of course you do."

Hinata didn't take offensive to his comment however, instead she nudged his arm playfully. "You love me too."

"I do," he said simply, scrubbing the pan.

The sound of the door bell ringing alerted the both of them. They didn't get visitors too often, neither of them succeeding in making too many friends. The towns people were friendly enough, but the two of them weren't exactly social butterflies. They spent a great deal of their time together, too wrapped up in their own world to really give a shit about what went on on the outside.

"I'll get it," she said to him, sliding down from the counter.

She straightened out her clothes first, a little embarrassed at what had just transpired between the two of them. Had it not been for the smoke detector going off, they would have most likely ended up in their bed room, rolling around under the sheets. It was a good thing she had gotten birth control from the local convenience store, she wasn't ready for any children...not yet.

Without asking who was there, she opened the door.

"Hinata."

She could feel her throat closing up, as if there wasn't enough air. Her stormy eyes widened in fear – pure, genuine fear. It was as if the past five and a half months had all been a dream and now she was waking up. It had been a fantasy, none of it was real, except for Naruto. Naruto was real and he was there, staring down at her with those cyan eyes that she had tried so hard to forget.

"Wh-what are you...doing here..." she asked slowly, stumbling on her words.

The blonde cleared his throat, looking down at his wife's expression. She looked absolutely horrified. He already knew he would not be welcomed, but her face solidified it.

"I... came to speak to you," he answered.

He knew better than to tell her he was there for her, to take her back to that cold, miserable mansion of theirs. That would only scare her away.

The wife's white eyes shifted around uneasily, unsure of where to look. She was shaking her head a little, trying to get her breathing together because it felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her.

"Why?" she whispered, her hand holding onto the door knob as if it were the only thing keeping her from melting under his gaze.

Naruto shifted uncomfortably. He had practiced a million times how he would approach her. He envisioned himself ever so eloquently, persuading her to come back home to him. The blonde imagined himself convincing her that he could and would do better, that he would be able to win her heart back. They could start over again. They could be happy again.

But as he looked down into those fearful eyes of hers, he was reminded of all the unforgivable things he had done to her.

It would be harder to get her to willingly come back to him – but that's just it, he didn't want to force her back. He wanted her to come back on her own. He wanted her to see in him all that she had when she decided to marry him. They could fix this, he knew it, he just needed her to give him a chance.

"Can I come in?" he asked her, his voice gentle and careful.

"Who's at the door?"

Hinata tore her gaze away from Naruto to find Sasuke approaching, drying his hands with a towel. Apparently, he had finished tending to the pan and was more interested in their guest.

Naruto peered inside, his eyes widening at the sight of the male coming into view. He recognized him, and apparently he did as well for the raven haired man he was positive that was living with his wife, narrowed his eyes at him.

"You," Naruto said.

He was her boss. He remembered seeing him that day he had came to her job to pick her up. He had been speaking with her when he arrived. Naruto remembered how unhappy he was that his wife was to be working on a Saturday, the one day he had off. He planned on spending time with her on that day, however this man had gotten in the way of all of that.

So he had been the one helping her. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the two were now involved. What man would go this far to help a woman he wasn't interested in? Hinata most definitely was a quality woman, Naruto knew this and it was a huge part of the reason why he had married her.

"Hinata," the male said, using her name so casually and wrapping his arm around her waist. "Don't be rude, invite him inside. We don't have guests often, you know."

Hinata gasped softly, looking up at Sasuke who had been staring Naruto down, a calm expression on his face. She looked back to her husband, her heart beating rapidly. She knew that with Sasuke here, Naruto couldn't hurt her, but she was still scared. Her arms were shaking and her legs felt wobbly. Her mind was telling her to slam the door and lock it, bolt it if she had to – do whatever it was to keep this man away from her. She gave into Sasuke however, she knew it would be futile trying to make it all go away. Who was she kidding? She was going to have to deal with Naruto someday. He wasn't the kind of man to just simply let go of the things he wanted or thought belong to him. Her last name was proof that she was Uzumaki Naruto property and he was here to claim what was his.

"C-come in..." she said softly, the two of them stepping aside and allowing him into their home.

Naruto stepped inside, looking around their apartment.

It was modest – a cozy little place. The were whites and blacks tossed around the room, complimenting each other instead of contrasting as one would expect. There were pictures in picture frames placed around the living area, ones of scenery and some of the two of them and family members of Hinata's that he remembered. In some the two of them were together, her smiling and him looking cool and distant, yet happy nonetheless. It was the home of a happy couple, that he could tell.

The door clicking shut behind him was enough to draw him out of his thoughts. He turned around to find his wife holding onto this man's arm, her white eyes watching him hesitantly.

"So, Uzumaki-san," Sasuke started, "What brings you here to Shikoku?"

It was all Naruto could do not to roll his eyes. This man knew damn well why he was here so why was he fucking around with him? He came to get his wife. He didn't appreciate that she was sucking onto this man like that either. He kept his cool though. He had to show Hinata that he wouldn't explode. He had to make a good impression if he was going to get her back.

"I came to speak with my wife," he replied, keeping his voice calm and natural.

He studied her carefully. She looked a little different. Her skin was pale yes, but not ghostly like it was five months ago – there was more color in her. Her hair had grown out some, a lot longer than he liked it, but it fit her. She wasn't wearing bangs anymore either. Her dark hair was parted down the middle and even on both sides.

Sasuke looked down at Hinata, noting how she shifted uncomfortably beside him, her tiny hand holding his arm for support. He took her hand in his and she looked up at him.

"Give our guest a seat, okay? I'm going to make coffee for us," he said to her before letting her go and walking into the kitchen.

He had known this day would come. Eventually, Naruto was going to show up looking for his wife. Sasuke was actually a bit surprised that it had taken so long. He knew Naruto would have no trouble finding her however, unlike him, Naruto could easily throw his name and money around to get what he wanted from people.

Hinata cast Sasuke a nervous glance only to find that his back was to her as he worked in the kitchen. Hesitantly, she turned her attention onto her husband who was looking at her with an unfamiliar expression.

"H-here..." she said, gesturing to the sofa.

Sasuke knew of her trouble with her husband, and he _knew _what he looked like and who he was. Why on earth had he invited him inside? Hinata couldn't figure it out. She would have preferred to slam the door in his face – she should have done so when she had the chance. Instead, he was sitting down on her sofa, looking around her new home.

"Did you decorate it?" he asked her, his voice gentle.

Hinata was silent for a moment or so before she spoke up. "We... did it together," she said to him, sitting down in the chair across from him.

Naruto nodded his head. It was nothing like their mansion, filled with antics and designer labels. This home was completely different. It was more _lived _in. It was warmer too, their was life in this modest apartment. Part of him couldn't understand why she'd give up their nicer things to live a simple life like this one. Part of him understood indeed.

"Ah. It's nice..." he told her, truly meaning it.

Hinata swallowed past the lump that lodged itself in her throat. They were being civil so far, talking, but not at all about what was really on both of their minds. She looked up, her eyes finding the kitchen again and looking for help from Sasuke. His back was still to her however, offering little if any assistance. Finally, her white eyes met with her husband again.

"What...are you here for, Naruto?"

The blonde was taken aback by his wife's new found confidence. She had been so quiet and demure these past few years, even when he arrived, she had been that frail woman he had grown accustomed to. He had forgotten that such a Hinata had existed.

"I miss you," he admitted without hesitation. "I miss you to the point where my throat gets tight and its hard to breathe."

Hinata clenched her teeth together tightly and closed her eyes.

"I want you to come back," he continued. "I want to make things better, to change. I'll change. I _have _changed."

His cyan eyes studied her face as if seeing her for the first time. His wife was the most beautiful woman in the world. She was kind hearted and understanding of people. She believed in them, more than he ever did and that just might be a fault of hers. She was trusting and saw the beauty in everyone and everything around her. She made the best of life. She would forgive him for all that he had done, he knew she would. She would take him back. It would take some time, but Hinata would take him back.

"I want to do this over, me and you," he told her, leaning forward and gently taking her hands in his, lacing their fingers together causing her to open her eyes. "I want to start over. I want to give you the life I neglected to these past few years. You deserve so much more and I want to be the one to give it to you, Hinata. There's no one out there, no one in this world who is more meant for me than you are. You have to understand that. I need you."

The backs of her eyes were stinging by now, her heart beating rapidly. She wanted to believe him, god she wanted to, she just couldn't put herself back in that same position once again.

"Naruto, I –"

"Hear me out, please," he cut in, his eyes begging her.

She nodded and that's when Sasuke made his appearance, setting down a cup of coffee for each of them and standing by his girlfriend. Naruto locked eyes with him and didn't need anything but common sense to tell him that he was disliked and unwelcome despite of the fact that is was his idea to let him in.

Like Hinata, Sasuke wanted Naruto nowhere near them. The only difference was, Sasuke understood that this had to happen. There was no way they could live peacefully, either of them, without settling it. Hinata would always be looking over her shoulder, watching her back, fearing that Naruto was coming after her if they didn't come to an agreement. While he was tempted to hurt the blonde, he knew that it wouldn't do him or Hinata, most importantly, any good. Naruto was a powerful man, he could do anything to them if he wanted to.

Clearing his throat, Naruto starting again, ignoring how Sasuke placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder.

"Lets get married. Again," he suggested, pulling from his pocket the black velvet box from before.

Hinata's eyes widened as he opened the case, revealing the most beautiful ring she had ever seen.* It was a bundle of diamonds, assorted together in the shape of a flower's bud. The white diamonds glistened and gleamed and she had a moment of weakness and touched it. Ice cold.

Naruto's heart thumped hard, taking her action as a good sign. "We'll get married and start over. We'll live the life we were supposed to. I'll give up politics if that's what it takes. We'll move some place else, Thailand. You love Thailand. We'll go there and we'll start our family again."

Family. The word snapped her out of the trance the diamonds induced and she pulled her hand back as if it had burned her. Her mind began swirling with thoughts of Akira. Their Akira. _Her _Akira. Her baby.

Her hand moved to her belly, rubbing it subconsciously as if missing the child that was once inside.

"Akira..."

Naruto nodded his head, ignoring the jolt of pain that went through him at the sound of their son's name.

"We'll have more children, Hinata," he told her.

"No."

Naruto stared at her, his heart sinking into his stomach. "Why?" he asked softly. "We can be happy again, Hinata."

She was shaking her head by this time. "No... no..."

Sasuke looked down at his girlfriend, watching as the tears began rolling out of her eyes. He reached for her hand, holding it in his and offering her the comfort she needed from him. He couldn't fight this battle for her, she had to over come this on her own, however, he wouldn't leave her alone. He would support her always.

"I can't go back Naruto," she told him. "These past few years... these past few years have been hell. Hell, Naruto. I can't take it anymore. That's why I left. You can't just... _buy _people. You can't just throw fancy gifts at me when ever you fuck up. A new dress, a bracelet, a trip to Mexico, a week at a spa, a fucking engagement ring, Naruto, god."

Naruto stared at her long and hard, ignoring the stinging sensation at the back of his eyes. "I'm not trying to buy you..."

"Yes, you are," she told him, her white eyes filling with tears. "You've always done that, even before we were married. You used money to make things better all the time. You always say you're going to change but instead you just try and buy your way out of it."

She held onto Sasuke's hand tightly for strength as the words came bubbling out of her throat. All the things she was too afraid to say to him, all the thoughts she kept to herself, it was all coming out now.

"And... you can't replace Akira. You just... can't, Naruto," he voice was soft, cracking as soft sobs escaped her. "You can't...replace him."

"Hinata – "

"No!" she screamed at him. "Just... just...stop it, okay? Stop it..."

Naruto studied her, watching as the tears fell freely from her eyes. He had came here, expecting her to come back to him and instead, it was the exact opposite.

"Pl – "

She shook her head. "I can't go back with Naruto," she said softly. "I' don't want to. It's been years since I've been this happy... I'm not giving it up. I... I want a divorce, Naruto."

* * *

_Two years later_

The sun was out that day, clear, cloudless skies overhead. The summer air was warm at last after months of dry heat. Shikoku was getting ready for it's annual festival again and the town's people were humming with joy, readily preparing for the tourists.

Hinata walked down the street to her apartment, the one she shared with Sasuke, carrying a few shopping bags in her hands. Sasuke had gotten good job in the next town over and often didn't make it home until mid-evening. Hinata liked to use that time to prepare something nice for him.

She walked inside, placing her keys down and made her way into the kitchen and set out to prepare his favorite meal. Time went by easily, the day progressing nicely and it wasn't long before Sasuke arrived.

"Hinata?" he called, smelling the scent of food coming from the dinning room.

The male walked inside to find her setting the table, a pleasant look on her face.

"Hi," she said to him, setting down their glasses.

Sasuke smiled at her, watching as she rubbed the ring on her finger subconsciously with her thumb, smiling at him with genuine delight. She always made coming home worth it. He wouldn't be able to find a better woman if he tried to. Hinata was everything he had ever wanted and he was glad to say that she was his wife.

He remembered the way she cried when he presented her with the ring. It was the sweetest, happiest tears he had ever seen. She had kissed him over and over, telling him how much she loved him and how she was lucky to have met him. Their wedding had been a simple one, different from her first one he was told. There were only twenty guests and the ceremony took place at her cousin's estate. Her father had offered them a new house, one far nicer than their one bedroom apartment, but the couple had kindly refused. They liked their small living quarters. It was enough for the two of them to share comfortably, but that was all about to change.

Sasuke made his way over to his wife, gathering her in his arms and pressing affectionate kisses to her lips.

"How are you, Uchiha Hinata?" he asked, smiling as she rubbed her nose to his.

"I'm well..." she answered, nibbling her bottom lip.

"What is it?" he asked her, sensing something was on her mind due to that dreamy smile she was wearing.

They might have still been in their honeymoon stages, but Sasuke knew that look had absolutely nothing to do with sex. She had a secret and probably a good one.

"Not yet," she told him, breaking apart, "let's eat first."

Sasuke nodded, but was not fully ready to let the subject drop. She knew something he didn't and despite himself, he was itching to know.

The two ate peacefully, dancing around the subject that was eating away at both of them.

"Hinata..."

"Hn?" she asked coyly, sipping on her glass of water.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes slightly. "Don't dick around with me... what's going on?"

Hinata giggled softly, setting her glass down and sitting up straight. "Guess."

"You know I don't like this game..."

"Baby, just guess," she encouraged him, standing up and beginning to clear the table.

"Your sister is coming to visit?" he inquired as she walked into the kitchen.

He couldn't say that he was ready for another visit from Hanabi. She made it quite clear that if he ever took one step in the Naruto direction, that she was coming for his genitals.

"Nope," she answered him, coming back into view.

She leaned against the door frame a bit, smiling happily at him.

"You won the lottery?"

"No, of course not. You know I don't gamble..." she responded, rolling her eyes playfully. "Guess again."

"Hinata..." he said, getting a bit testy.

"One more guess and I'll tell you, promise," she insured.

Sasuke was beginning to think that she knew he would get it wrong. She was just doing this for her own amusement.

"You want to move back to the city?'

She giggled. "We might have to."

A skeptical Sasuke arched his brow at her. "Why?"

"I'm pregnant. Thirteen weeks."

Sasuke stared at his wife for a long time, his eyes falling away from her smiling face and focusing on her tummy now. It was rounded.

"You're not shitting me."

"I'm not," she said, rubbing her belly.

He smirked a bit. "And here I thought you were just getting fat. They say when women settle down they start letting themselves go."

"Sasuke!" she exclaimed, nudging him.

He laughed out loud, enjoying the blush that crept across her face.

"I am not 'letting myself go'" she argued.

"I know, baby, I know," he said, taking her wrist and gently pulling her into his lap.

He held her close, rubbing his hand up and down her belly, feeling the life, the love, growing inside of her. His child.

"I love you," he told her, leaning his head up and pressing a light kiss to her lips.

"We love you too, Uchiha Sasuke," she assured him, a bright smile tugging at her lips.

**The End**

* * *

_**The end! The end! We did it! *throws confetti into the air* yaaaaaaaay! Okay, so I'd like to thank everyone who has read this story from start to finish. I hope I have satisfied you in more way than one *perv smile*. Anyway. I hope you all like the way I handled the confrontation. I didn't want Sasuke to get all bent out of shape, Hinata has to take care of her self sometime. It's been emphasied over and over in the story that she relied on other people to fight for her. I wanted this last chapter to demonstrate her standing up for herself to Naruto at last. I wanted to demonstrate her growth as a person. I hope I did that well. Anyway, leave me a review, you know that I'm a slut for them.**_

**_*Curious about the two wedding rings in this chapter? I'll be posting pics of them on my profile so check them out. Oh and be sure to vote on my poll. I'm changing my pen name. _**

**_Love always,_**

_KawaiixKisses_


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